I'll Always Be in Your Heart
by Mystics Apprentice
Summary: "No matter what happens to me, we'll never be apart," Riku said softly to Sora, locking fingers into his. "So long as we remember each other, we'll always be together, within each other's hearts" A much sadder, alternate ending to KH2—No yaoi.
1. The Door To the Light

**Author's Note: **This is an alternate ending for Kingdom Hearts II, as I thought the original was slightly lacking and felt incomplete. Of course, the ending to KH2 is indeed much happier than this story is, but ah well—I just thought this would be interesting.

I originally intended for this to only be a one-shot, but I was then inspired to create a much longer story. It was hard for me to decide whether I wanted to condense it all within one chapter, or break it up, but in the end this won out, as I thought one 12,000-word chapter might be slightly overwhelming to read within one sitting ;)

Anyway, this is my interesting twist to the ending of KH2; I hope the rest of you will enjoy!

I'm currently working back through this story to change around some wording and to remove prior grammatical errors. Hopefully I'll complete the edit sooner rather than later, yet given my writing schedule and beta reading I'm not altogether which it'll be of the two, hehe.

I love reviews, and if anyone would be so kind as to leave me one it would be greatly appreciated :D I always love constructive criticism and to hear any pros or cons that you found within the story so that I can make my future writings better. Thanks so much for reading, and enjoy the story!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters. All rights belong to its respective owners – Tetsuya Nomura and Square Enix to name a few – and I'm only writing this purely for my entertainment, so no profit for me! ;)

**-Part I-**

Cool waves hit the darkened beach as Sora awoke in a place beyond his wildest imaginings. Only moments before he'd engaged in combat with Xemnas and had won, yet he couldn't remember entering this strange, unfamiliar place; he could only assume that he'd been brought here after their battle.

Slowly the brunet stood up, brushing damp sand from his capris before slowly taking in the scene around him.

"Riku, where are we?" he voice echoed, turning his head at the remembrance of his best friend.

A low groan sounded only a short distance behind him, causing Sora crane his neck in that direction. There he could see Riku lying facedown in the sand, Keyblade still clutched in hand, and a great deal of blood soaking the back of his shirt. Realization suddenly hit Sora, his thoughts fleeing to their fight with Xemnas; Riku had indeed suffered injury by the blade of Xemnas's Ethereal Blade, but it only just now occurred to Sora that Riku had truly been "hurt."

Sora's feet pounded against the dark beach, his heels stirring up sand as he rushed over towards his friend. Upon reaching his side the brunet instantly dropped to his knees.

"Riku!" He quickly shifted his friend so that his face was no longer buried within the sand. "Riku, are you alright? Say something!"

Sora pulled his friend's upper body onto his lap, not caring if his blood started to saturate his clothing as well. Riku moaned again, yet slowly opened his turquoise eyes to look at him.

"He's–he's gone…right?" he asked weakly, struggling to pull himself up from Sora using his arms, yet failing and falling back onto his lap.

"Yeah…yeah he is," Sora replied distraughtly. He tenderly brushed aside Riku's long, silver bangs from his face, searching his expression for something, yet it was rather unknown what that something could've been. "Riku, I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have been so vulnerable in that fight. I should've–"

"No, Sora," murmured Riku, shaking his head weakly. "_I _am the one that should be apologizing. I shouldn't have been so vulnerable…vulnerable to the darkness."

Sora barely caught Riku's words amidst frantically shifting him onto his side so that he could examine the injury made by Xemnas's blade.

"If I hadn't–given in to the darkness, none of this would've happened… Sora… I'm sorry–"

"Shut up, Riku," Sora muttered, panic rising in his tone as his eyes traced the deep puncture wound that the blades had caused. The blood from his wound proceeded to flow freely, so much so that Sora found it difficult to determine the depth of the puncture, yet its location concerned him. "You know this wasn't your fault–none of it."

"It was, and I'm s—"

"Stop!"

Riku's eyes moved onto Sora's face, running his tongue over his lower lip while carefully studying his friend's expression.

"It's alright, it was worth it; he's gone now, and that's all that matters."

Sora's azure-blue eyes widened in surprise. His gaze turned to his friend once more.

"What do you mean 'that's all that matters'? Riku, what are you talking about? You're gonna be okay! First we've just gotta figure out where we are, and then we need to get you back home–"

Riku shook his head, his bangs falling back into his pallid face. "Sora…it's too late for me. My back–I can't feel anything below my wound –" His eyes fluttered shut momentarily, and Sora's heart was temporarily seized with fear. This couldn't be happening…it just couldn't. Not after everything they all had been through; just when the three of them were going to be together again, exactly how it used to be….

Sora had lost Riku once, and he wasn't about to lose him again. Tears threatened to well in his eyes as he firmly grasped his friend's hand.

"Look; we're going to get out of here, and you're going to be okay. I – I don't know what happened to you exactly, but I know everything's gonna be fine. Trust me!" Sora offered one of his wide, cheesy signature-smiles upon this, causing Riku to grin back solemnly.

"Sora, this isn't a temporary fix–this…this is bad. I'm not sure I'd be okay even _if _you brought me home."

Sora began to shut his ears off from his friend's words with the inability to accept them. He needed to get home, he needed to get Riku home, but why was home so far unattainable always? Especially when he desperately needed it.

"Which, actually, I doubt neither of us are ever going to see 'home' again," Riku muttered, shifting his shoulders slightly so that he was flat on his back once more. "Do you know where we are, Sora?"

Sora turned to face him. "I don't know what you mean. Of course we're going to get home–we just need to–"

"We're in the Realm of Darkness, Sora, and I don't think there's any way to get out."

With glassy eyes and a heavy heart, he scanned the shoreline. They were on a similar beach to that of their own islands, yet something was 'different' and out of place. No warmth surrounded them, nor did the sunshine manage to penetrate the eternal darkened sky, and–as Sora slowly began to further take in his surroundings–he came to the painful realization that they indeed _were _in the Realm of Darkness. A realm which was believed to have no possible way out of.

Pain seized Sora's chest, a pain that he'd never felt before or could truly begin to explain. He slid out from under Riku and stood up, turning around to face the waters advance and recede on the shoreline. His mind raced as he began to increasingly become dizzy; there was no way that they could be trapped there forever. There was no way…

Unfortunately, even _if _Sora were to be trapped there forever he would be alone, all alone. He couldn't deny it any longer; Riku was dying, and if he didn't get him help—and soon—there would indeed be no way to save him.

The brunet walked over to the coastline, cold water running past his feet and splashing onto his exposed ankles as it advanced onto the shore. The salty, sea-water air reminded him of so many days ago, back when the three of them were practically worry-free. Back when they used to spend their days playing on their little island of their own, with their grandest worry being if the weather would hold up so that they could go sailing the next day. For one brief moment Sora thought those days were so near; just within his grasp. That soon, the three of them would be able to go back to their old lives where they could waste their days away playing on the islands and attempt scoring good enough grades to pass yet another year in school. That was, of course, until this happened. Now all of that hope was gone, and Sora felt it were only wistful thinking that things could ever go back to the way they once were. Besides, even if they did succeed in getting back, would their lives really be able to return to normal?

Hot tears began to fill Sora's eyes, and he desperately fought them from rolling down his cheeks. He didn't want to face an eternity in the Realm of Darkness and, especially, _not alone._

It wasn't long before his vision had been blurred with tears, and he'd noticed something glint within the ocean's waves. Sora squinted to make it out before wiping away his tears with the back of his hand. He blinked, continuing to watch the glinting object float above water, bobbling between the waves, as it made its way towards the coast. Upon drawing closer, Sora could finally discern this object to be a glass bottle, in it seemed to be some kind of paper.

_A message in a bottle!_

Because Sora had nothing else going for him–or rather nothing else to lose–he charged towards the bottle, deeper and deeper into the freezing water until he was waist-deep within it. Standing there in the cold, darkened water that only chilled him to the bone, he popped out the cork and began to uncurl the water-stained message before attempting to read it. He read the first line and paused, stopping upon recognizing the slanted handwriting. It seemed all too familiar to Sora, yet for the life of him he could not recognize from where.

"_Thinking of you, wherever you are._

_We pray for our sorrows to end, and hope that our hearts will blend._

_Now I will step forward to realize this wish._

_And who knows:_

_starting a new journey may not be so hard,_

_or maybe it has already begun._

_There are many worlds, but they share the same sky —_

_one sky, one destiny._"

_-Kairi_

Kairi…

While Sora mused over the meaning of Kairi's message, a blinding light sprang before him. Reflexively, Sora threw an arm out to shield his eyes, attempting to squint through the blinding light to make out what was before him. Slowly his pupils adjusted to the light and, of course, once the light began to fade down he could make out what seemed to be—

"No, wait, it couldn't be—a door?"

A gentle wind rustled Sora's brunet locks as he stared in amazement at the opening within the light. It indeed 'was' a door, and before he could ask himself where it led to or where it came from he already decided that he was going through it—no matter what.

"Riku!" Sora exclaimed, turning around and running back over to his best friend. The bottle remained clenched in one hand while the message was in the other. "Riku! The door! The door to the light! I think it's our way home!"

Riku didn't respond or move in the least as Sora approached him and once again dropped hard onto his knees. They protested terribly, reawakening old injuries and bruises that Sora had obtained during their vicious battle, yet he ignored this and began to observe his friend more carefully.

"Riku, it's our way out! Don't you see?" Upon this, Sora grasped the collar of Riku's vest and began shaking it gently, enough so that it shook his upper body slightly. "Riku, come on! Wake up, we've got to go home now!"

Sora's eyes traveled over the wounded body of his friend, reassuring himself that the rise and fall of his chest indicated that he wasn't yet dead.

"Only unconscious," Sora told himself, setting the bottle aside before swinging one of Riku's arms over his shoulder. "He's unconscious, but he's okay. He's still with me."

Sora slid his arm underneath his friend's knees and began to stand up. The additional weight threatened Sora's knees to buckle, and it was then that Sora first realized how weak he really was. His vision darkened as he began to feel increasingly light-headed, yet he chose to fight on; he was _this _close to getting home, and he wasn't going to give up just yet. Riku needed him, and he was going to be there for him. Always.

Sora's eyes bored into the door of light as he forced himself along the darkened beach, each step becoming more and more difficult for the poor boy to handle. Once he reached the shoreline he lost his footing and fell to his knees, his head spinning at a furious pace. He fought to hold onto Riku, and instead fell slightly overtop of him.

For a moment Sora could only sit there stunned, regaining his thoughts as he fought for breath. His mind wanted to shut down, his limbs no longer wanted to support him, yet he forced himself on. He began to scoot through the dampened sand whilst kicking off with his feet and pulling himself with an arm, his eyes still fixated on the door of light; refusing to take his eyes off of it for even a millisecond. He had to make it there, he had to…

At last he was fully submerged into the water, and he began to slowly paddle his way towards the door, radiating ever brighter as he inched his way closer. His grasp tightened around Riku, now holding his body close to his while swimming frantically.

"I'm almost there…almost there…"

Sora eventually met the light's zenith and slowly the warmth managed to penetrate through the chilling cold of the water, into Sora's very heart. It slowly began to grow larger and larger, until it consumed the boys entirely.


	2. Home Again

**-Part II-**

All that Sora could remember was a sense of falling; falling with all of the grace in the world. But it wasn't quite falling, exactly. It was almost more like flying uncontrollably, and landing in a destination that hadn't been appointed. Sora remembered his weakened body hitting water gently; water that was drastically warmer than of that of which he'd previously been wading in. He forced himself onto his knees within the shallow waters, and squinted in the brightened light to see his surroundings. There, directly before him, stood Destiny Islands as he remembered it. The tree houses, the shade of the Paopu trees; everything was exactly as Sora had remembered it. And then, standing directly before him, was the one girl that he'd wanted to see more than anybody during his whole journey. The girl with the vivid auburn locks, that were considerably longer than they had been during his last visit to the islands.

Sora forced himself onto his feet, and he swayed momentarily in the sea-salt breeze. Kairi's expression changed from joy, to worry, as she watched Sora attempt to take a step forward and nearly stumble.

"Kairi –" Sora breathed, as he took another heavy step forward. "We-we're back!"

Just then, Sora's whole world swam before his eyes, as the girl in front of him slowly transformed from the auburn-haired girl he'd always known growing up, to a different girl whom resembled his former friend, yet she was different. At first, Sora had thought he'd never seen her before, but as she came more into focus, and her auburn hair changed to a pale blond, he suddenly remembered –

Sora reached a hand out towards her, her name forming at his pale lips, as he fell forcefully onto his knees, before blacking out entirely.

Now, Sora felt an odd tingling in his fingers that he hadn't noticed before, perhaps it was just his body reawakening, or perhaps it was more-like his hands had gone to sleep. He was in a bed; that much he could discern. It wasn't his bed at home though; his bed wasn't quite so…stiff. He opened his eyes slowly, only to find that he couldn't see any better than he'd been able to with his eyes closed. He closed his eyes once more, and began to raise his right hand to rub them when a different hand closed in on his and stopped him.

"Huh?" Sora muttered, squinting in the darkness of the room he was in to try to make out the figure beside him.

"Don't; your IV," a familiar feminine voice said thickly, and it didn't take long for Sora to recognize where he'd heard that voice before. It'd been almost two years since he'd last heard it spoken, and not a day had gone by that he hadn't missed it.

"M-Mom?" Sora asked hoarsely, as he felt his hand around to grasp hers, his vision slowly coming into focus as he fixated his eyes on the darkened silhouette of the woman beside his bed. "Is it – is that really you?"

Sora heard a choking sound, before the hand he'd found grasped his tightly and he felt another begin stroking back his hair.

"Yes, sweetie; it's me. You're finally home!" she cried, and before she could stop him, she found herself being embraced tightly by her son, his face buried into the folds of her blouse.

"Oh, Mom! I've missed you so much –" he said thickly, letting the tears that he'd been holding back to finally fall. "You've no idea…"

Sora's mom said nothing, as she swallowed hard and began rubbing little circles across his back.

"Me too, Sora. Me too…."

"I'm so glad to finally be home," Sora said enthusiastically. "Now everything can go back to normal again!"

His mother's heart began to beat quickly, as her grip tightened on him. Slowly, Sora began to pull away and look up into his mother's face, which was half-hidden by the darkness of the room.

"Mom?" he asked quizzically, "what's wrong? Is there something that you're not telling me?"

Sora's mom began fidgeting with her hair, as a door that Sora hadn't even realized existed until that very moment swung open. Now that his eyes had grown accustomed to the dark, the light that now illuminated from the bright-lit hall blinded him, as he squinted to make out another figure enter the room.

"Is everything alright in here?" a female's voice asked softly, as the figure flipped on a light-switch, causing a dim light to turn on overhead.

Sora shielded his eyes with his arm, while his mom turned to the nurse and smiled.

"Oh yes, everything's quite fine in here," she said brightly, her hand still resting on Sora's.

Now that his eyes were semi-adjusted to the light, Sora attempted to survey the room more carefully. He'd heard his mom tell him that he had an IV in his arm, but for some reason it hadn't registered with him that it meant he was in the hospital. He took a glance down at himself, dressed in nothing but a hospital gown, and then glanced back up at the nurse.

"W-what am I doing here?" he asked hoarsely, looking from his mom to the nurse with wide, blue eyes. "I'm not sick! I'm perfectly fine, see?"

With that, Sora sat bolt upright in the bed and began to swing his legs over the edge. He was about to stand up and prove to them that he could walk, until both his mom and the nurse began chuckling.

"Yes, Sora, we can see that you're fine," his mom said, attempting to stifle a laugh. "But your dad and I thought you ought to get checked out first, just in case. Okay?"

Sora huffed, and he swung his legs back onto the bed and leaned against the pillows.

"Alright, but you'd better hurry up and check on me; I've got things to do."

His mom smiled, laughter filling her eyes playfully as she brushed his bangs back as though he were still a little boy – and to her, he indeed was a little boy. The little boy that she'd missed for two years, and thought she'd never see again.

"Oh, things? What sort of things?"

Sora's eyes traced the patterns on the ceiling, as he thought about it hard.

"Well, I haven't really said hello to Kairi yet, and Riku…" Sora, snapping out of his daze, turned to his mom abruptly and cried out "Riku!" far louder than he intended to.

The nurse looked over at Sora's mom confusedly, while his mother bent her head down low, biting her lip.

"Mom, is Riku okay? Where is he, do you know?" Sora asked anxiously, now sitting upright once more. Amidst all of the joy in his and his mom's reunion, Sora had completely forgotten as to how bad Riku was when they'd left the Realm of Darkness; he didn't even know if his dear friend was still alive.

"Riku's okay, Sora," his mom said shortly, patting his shoulder gently. "Don't be too worried; you'll be able to see him once you're released, okay?"

"But Mom, where is he? Is he here, in the hospital? What happened to him? How bad is he?" Sora further pressed; as his mom attempted to push him back gently against the pillows once more.

"Sora, you need to calm down," she said, her tone holding a slight edge of impatience. "_Yes,_ Riku's here, and I saw him earlier. He's okay, Sora, you brought him back in time."

Sora studied his mom's expression carefully; she refused to meet his eye, and he could see the worry tugging at the edges of her features as she spoke. He then turned to the nurse whom was standing directly behind his mother.

"Do _you _know what's going on with Riku?" Sora asked her hopefully.

The nurse shrugged her shoulders, as she checked a few things off of her clipboard.

"I don't even know who Riku is, hon," she muttered, as she turned to face Sora's mom once more. "He seems to be fine, but we should probably have a doctor look at him later, just to be sure."

"Yes, that would be nice, thank you," Sora's mom replied, turning to offer the nurse a radiant smile.

Sora barely heard the nurse ask him if he needed anything before she left, while his mind was spinning frantically. He didn't believe his mom - not for a second. Even though he hadn't seen her in years, he recognized that look – it meant that she was trying to avoid his question. That, or she was lying; she never had been a very good liar.

"Mom, what are you not telling me about Riku?" he demanded, while she sat back and pulled out her cell phone. "I _need_ to know, how is he? I know he got hurt pretty bad, and –"

"You'll see him once you're released, Sora," his mom said in an exasperated tone. "I'm sure the doctor will be here soon, and if he says you can go, you may go see Riku, okay?"

Sora barely muttered an inaudible agreement as he buried himself deeper into the pillows, thinking back to how long it'd really been since he'd slept in a bed, while his mom dialed up a number and put the phone to her ear. He hadn't noticed before, but he really missed sleeping in one. He wondered if Riku had missed sleeping in a bed as well as his mind slowly began to drift off and sleep began to claim him once more…

**Author's Note:**

For those of you whom are unfamiliar with Chain of Memories, the girl whom Sora had envisioned taking the place of Kairi was her Nobody, Namine, whom Sora had met throughout Chain of Memories and subsequently, had forgotten her through obtaining his original memories. Anyhow, I just wanted to point that out, in case anyone's wondering what the heck I was thinking ;) (and yes, Sora indeed _does _see Namine taking the place of Kairi in Kingdom Hearts II, only in a different context.)


	3. The Escape Artist

**-Part III-**

Sora felt a warm kiss on his forehead and a hand brush his cheek before his eyes fluttered open, taking in the angelic, gentle face of his mother standing before him.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. I didn't mean to wake you up," she whispered softly.

Sora yawned, stretching his arms over his head before responding.

"That's okay; I'm sure by now I've slept plenty anyway," he said, offering his mom a wide smile.

His mom smiled at him sadly, as she readjusted her purse's strap over her shoulder.

"I'm going to have to head home now, okay?"

Sora stifled another yawn, and nodded.

"When's the doctor coming?" he mumbled sleepily, his eyes not focused on her, but on his blanketed feet instead.

"Well, he already did a couple of hours ago," she replied, causing Sora's attention to snap in her direction.

"What?" he asked in shock. "Then why am I not coming with you?"

"Oh, Sora," his mom said, shaking her head. "He thought you looked fine, but he wanted to wait until morning to release you; just in case."

"Just in- but Mom, I need to go see Riku! I want to make sure he's really okay!" Sora exclaimed, now sitting upright in bed. "I'm fine! Really! Want me to prove it?"

"No, Sora," she said sternly, grasping his upper arms tightly to get his attention. "Look, I want you to listen to the doctor and just wait until tomorrow. Nothing's going to change overnight anyway, alright?"

"A lot could change overnight," Sora mumbled to himself, as his mother attempted to kiss his cheek through his messy locks of brown hair, but ended up kissing his ear instead.

"Go back to sleep, okay honey?" she said, more as an order rather than a suggestion. "And I'll see you in the morning."

"Right, bye Mom," Sora muttered rather unenthusiastically, not even turning to face her.

"Goodnight Sora; I'll see you tomorrow!" She was then standing at the door, blowing a kiss in his direction.

"Yeah…"

Sora crossed his arms and frowned in the darkness after his mother had swung open the door and left. He _was _fine. He knew his body, and he'd been way worse than this. Sure, he was still a little tired, but that was to be expected after traveling through the worlds for a year, right?

He got out of bed slowly, unwrapping his IV's cord from around the bedpost and dragging the entire unit with him over to the window. He had a perfect view of Destiny Islands, though it wasn't very easy to make out in the current lighting. Sora wasn't entirely certain as to what time it was, but gauging from the darkness of the streets and buildings below, he was assuming that it was quite late. He glanced over towards the opposite side of the room, and recognized one of his mom's old duffels in the corner that they used to use for camping. He walked over towards it, his bare feet hitting the smooth wooden floor gently as he crouched down beside the bag and began examining its contents. His mother must've brought it for him, as it carried many essentials that only a mother like his could remember. A toothbrush, bar of soap, shampoo, a hairbrush, a razor, a change of clothes that he doubted would even fit him anymore, and some towels. Dumb essentials, in Sora's opinion. Whenever he'd sleepover at Riku's house, these were the things that he always _forgot _to pack, but he always remembered _his _idea of essentials. Which mainly consisted of junk food, video games, comic books, sometimes homework (that he and Riku would only use to spread out as a mat), and anything else that Sora deemed fit in order to have a good time at a sleepover. He often times forgot his toothbrush, which he figured was okay, since he always had to brush his teeth the next day with his mom hoarding him to do so.

Down at the bottom of the bag, his hand rubbed over something small and hard, which caught him off-guard. He'd thought that was all his mom could think of; unless of course she was planning on embarrassing him more by including yet another one of her ideal 'essentials'!

He pulled out his old watch, the one that he'd owned ever since he was a little kid. It was during one of their campouts, when Sora's dad had taken him and Riku to a fair the next day. Both Riku and Sora had gotten matching watches, that Riku to that very day would taunt him about losing the day he'd brought it back. Sora had never known what happened to that watch, and was almost happy to have finally found it.

Sora glanced over towards the window, as his thoughts drifted off towards his best friend of whom resided within that hospital on a bed somewhere. His friend that he so desperately wanted to see. Riku was bad when he'd left him; Sora remembered how forlorn his expression had been, and how darkened his eyes had become, as he was telling Sora that it was too late for him. It was so far from the sun to rise; what if it was too late then? Sora couldn't just wait and find out, he act to act…right then…

Sora reached out for his change of clothes and considered them momentarily. They looked a bit small, that was for certain, but he figured they'd work in a pinch, and he was going to do just that. He slipped on his old crop pants, which now fit him more like shorts would, and he began to pull the hospital gown over his head until he got caught on something.

The IV…. He'd entirely forgotten about the IV until that point, but would they notice if he took it off for long? He stole a glance at his right hand, observing the placement and the tube that fed through the needle. He couldn't take the needle out and put it back in – that much he was certain of. But if he just unplugged the tube…surely no one would notice before he got back, right?

He tugged on the tube and at last got it to separate from the needle that it was attached to, and gently placed it onto the floor. He slipped on his gloves from his older attire, hoping to conceal the needle, and he then began biting at his ID bracelet that was attached to his left wrist.

After a moment of biting, he finally gave up and decided to just tuck it under his glove and hope for the best; he just hoped that he wouldn't have to deal with anyone that close-up for them to discover it, anyway.

After pulling on and lacing up his big, rather bulky shoes, he carefully turned the knob of his hospital room and slid out the door. No sirens blazing, no nurses running; so far so good.

He picked up his pace and began walking briskly down the hall, as if he was just a perfectly normal boy, who had any right to be strolling through the hospital's halls at that hour. It wasn't until he'd reached the end of the hall that he discovered a problem: how would he ever find Riku? And after he found him, how would he find his way back? He really didn't want to resort to having to pull down his glove to reveal his ID bracelet and try to explain to the nurses that he had to get back to his room; that would be rather embarrassing, and not to mention it'd quite likely get back to his mom. Not only would his mom be concerned that he'd done something like that, but would also be downright _furious_. Sora glanced around, hoping to notice some sign of sorts to decipher which floor he was on, and possibly a name of the part of the hospital he was in. Luckily, Destiny Islands had a very small population, and therefore their hospital wasn't entirely huge. Sora had seen the hospital back in Hollow Bastion, and he was in shock at how large a hospital could really be.

"Can I help you, son?" a deep voice asked from behind him, which caused Sora to freeze in his steps. Panic seized him momentarily, until he remembered that he just needed to act like a 'perfectly-normal-boy-roaming-the-halls' and everything would be fine.

Sora cleared his throat and turned around to face the man behind him, who happened to be a security guard.

"Yeah, I'm just looking for my friend," he said nonchalantly.

The security guard grunted, not looking bemused in the slightest.

"Look, kid; this isn't a playground. This is a hospital, and do you know what time it is?"

"Ummm, actually no; I don't," Sora said, locking his fingers together and putting his hands behind his head as he so often did. "But you see, I'm not playing. I'm just looking for my friend, that's all."

"What are you and your friend doing roaming about the hospital at an hour such as this?" quizzed the security guard, his eyes fixated on Sora.

Sora raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I still don't know what time it is, but my friend's a patient in the hospital, and he's hur- I mean sick. And I want to go see him, that's all."

Sora watched the security guard, battling himself to not bite his lip out of nerves while the security guard seemed to process what Sora had said.

"Alright, normally no one's allowed in these halls past a certain hour, but since you seem so desperate to see your friend, and you seem like an okay kid…I'll escort you."

Sora's eyes widened in surprise, and then darkened once the security guard asked, "Where's his room at?"

"Uhhhhhh..."


	4. The Revelation

**-Part IV-**

It was twenty minutes later before Sora finally arrived at Riku's door, after talking with the security guard and nurses, trying to explain why he didn't know where Riku's room was, and why he wanted to know where he was to begin with. It seemed rather suspicious, until Sora explained that his mom was a patient within that hall, and she'd just been in a car accident.

"She's in that room, _right there_," Sora had told them, pointing to the room that actually belonged to him. "I told her that I was going to go check on my friend, and then I'd come right back."

The nurses and security guard seemed a tad bit suspicious of him, yet they chose not to further question him and true to his word, the security guard escorted Sora to Riku's room.

"I'll be waiting out here," the guard said softly, as he winked at Sora. "I hope your friend's okay."

"Yeah," Sora said distraughtly, as he eyed the door for a long moment before adding, "me too."

He knew that Riku had been pretty bad, but for some strange reason, he hadn't been expecting to find him residing within the urgent care center of the hospital. It was a small area apart from the rest of the hospital, which had nurses walking around everywhere and constantly monitoring the patients within. For a brief moment, Sora's heart seized with fear as he began to turn the doorknob to Riku's room. What would he look like once he came in? How bad would he be? And worse yet…would he still be alive?

"Don't be stupid, Sora," he mentally told himself as he stepped inside the darkened room. "If he was dead then he wouldn't still be in here."

But a tiny voice deep inside him had to ask silently just to stir up trouble, "…right?"

Sora stepped further into the room, and saw many different machines lit up near a bed, and heard the constant beeping sound of a heart monitor. Sora's stomach churned as he stood by the doorway momentarily; this was not the kind of scene that he had been picturing for Riku. He took a deep breath, and began to approach the bed, tiptoeing softly across the hardwood floor so as to not disturb him.

He let out a sigh to find Riku lying on the bed, perfectly still, yet looking like Riku, just as he remembered him. Though it was hard for Sora to discern due to the dim-lit room, his face seemed more pale than usual, but otherwise he still looked like Riku. Yet he was still, far too still… Sora would've perhaps thought he was dead momentarily had it not been for the heart monitor beeping irritably from the other side of the room.

"Riku?" Sora whispered, as he slowly reached out a hand towards his friend. He was about to rest a hand on his shoulder until a sharp voice from the corner of the room said, "Stop; he's sleeping. Let him rest."

Sora nearly jumped out his skin, as he turned his head towards the window, noticing a figure standing there that he'd neglected to notice before.

"Huh? But –" Sora turned to face his friend, watching him somberly as the figure stepped in closer to Sora, and he then recognized the man's voice to be that of Riku's father.

"He's obviously had a long day. Let him sleep now, Sora – it's the least you could do, after everything you've put him through," he said coldly, causing Sora to snap his head up and look at him.

"What – what do you mean?" Sora quizzed, his voice croaking slightly. "What did I put him through?"

Riku's father scoffed, as he turned his head towards the window.

"Everything. You've put him through everything, Sora, ever since he was a young boy –"

"Oh yeah?" Sora asked in a cocky tone, putting his hands on his hips. "And look who's talking: Mr. let's-neglect-my-son-because-I-want-my-millions!"

Sora couldn't make out Riku's father's expression in the dark, gratefully enough, but he could tell by his stature that he was seething with rage.

"_Leave_," he said in a dangerous tone, and normally, Sora would've obeyed without hesitation. But this time, it was different.

Sora sprang forward, and grasped Riku's shoulders and shook them gently.

"Riku? Riku! Wake up! Are you okay? Please, wake up!"

"No!" his father hissed, but stopped once Riku began to stir.

Sora's heart throbbed in his throat, as he held his breath and watched his friend slowly wake up. His eyes fluttered momentarily, before his turquoise eyes fixated on Sora with a rather bewildered expression.

"Sora?" he asked softly. "What are you –"

"Sorry for waking you up," Sora muttered. "But I had to come see you. I wanted to make sure that you were okay."

Riku grinned at him, as he reached out and grasped Sora's hand – luckily it being the hand without the IV needle underneath his glove. "Sure Sora, I'm fine, thanks to you."

Sora shook his head, as he grinned back at his friend, relief flooding him like an overflowing fountain as he saw Riku begin to act like his regular, old self again.

"Nah, you've got Kairi to thank for that," Sora told him, sitting on the edge of the bed, expecting Riku to scoot over to give him more room, yet he didn't. "If it weren't for her, we would've never gotten home."

Riku cocked his head slightly, watching Sora curiously for a moment.

"What do you mean? How did Kairi help?"

Sora explained to Riku about the letter, and how it opened the door to the light that brought them home. Once he finished, he wiped his eye with the back of his right hand – the IV one – only to be reminded rather painfully that it was still there.

"I'm so glad that you're okay, Riku! I was so worried –"

"Oh, Sora, you know that you worry too much. I'm fine; do you really think Xemnas could do away with me so easily?" Riku gave him a cocky grin. "So… how are you? I heard from your mom that you were in the hospital. Did they already let you out?"

"Well…" Sora hesitated, as he looked down at his shoes. "Not really…no."

"Really?" Riku asked incredulously. "Then what are you doing here? Did they actually let you come see me?"

"Ah, well, you see, Riku…" he began, putting his hands behind his head as he tilted to the side slightly, his usual stance in an awkward situation, especially when he didn't quite know how to answer something. "They don't exactly "know" that I'm here."

Riku only continued to stare at Sora until he added, "Well, I mean they 'know' I'm 'here', but they don't know-know…you know?"

Riku raised an eyebrow as he watched his brunette friend momentarily before he broke out in laughter.

"No, Sora, I don't know," he said, forcing back a laugh, "but it's okay, I don't think I want to know how you got here. I'm just glad that you did. It's good to see you."

Sora studied Riku for a long moment, surveying his expression carefully and staring into his deep, turquoise eyes; eyes that would often times speak even when his lips refused.

"Riku, are you really okay?" Sora asked him at last.

Riku bit his lip, watching Sora momentarily, before he blurted out a mixed jumble of words rather quickly that Sora fought to catch.

"Sora, they say that I'll never be able to walk again - what am I going to do?" His eyes were tear-filled, and Sora at last sensed the panic leeching through his normal air of confidence. "If I can't walk – I'm worthless –"

"No you're not, Riku," Sora said instantly without thinking. "So long as you're alive, you'll always make yourself useful, you're just that way. And how do you know that you won't ever be able to walk again? Maybe you will!"

Riku looked up at his friend momentarily, before his gaze dropped down to the floor, and he shook his head.

"That blow from Xemnas created permanent damage to my spinal cord. Damage, they say, that will never heal. However I am now is how I shall stay, and as it is right now, Sora, I can't even feel anything below the point that I'd been stabbed at."

Sora felt as though _he'd _been stabbed as he listened to Riku's somber words, and felt hot tears of his own well up in his eyes. A Riku that couldn't walk? That was just not possible! Riku had to walk again; he just had to! Riku had always been the one that was the most athletic out of the three of them, and to imagine him always having to be held up in bed, or a wheelchair was just beyond Sora's cope of understanding. He couldn't even pretend to visualize it, yet internalize that it was a reality.

"Riku…" Sora began, but couldn't think of anything else to say as hot tears leaked from his eyes and hit the blanket below him.

"I know; it's going to be tough to face," Riku said grimly, closing his eyes to the darkened room. "And I know I won't be able to do it without you, Sora. I'm really going to rely on you a lot – and I'm sorry for that –"

"Look, Riku," Sora whipped around so that he was facing Riku, taking his best friend's hand into his own. "If a friend needs me to be there, I'll be there - to help. I'll always be there to help you, Riku; I promise!"

A temporary silence lingered amongst them, as Riku watched Sora with glassy eyes. He squeezed Sora's hand and smiled at him.

"Thank you, Sora. I know that I don't deserve it, but thank you –"

"Of course you deserve it, Riku. You're my best friend, and always will be –"

The door to Riku's room opened, and the security guard poked his head in.

"Hey kid, are you almost through? It's getting late, and I've got some more patrolling to do before the night's up still."

"Uhh, yeah…just a second!" Sora whipped back around to face Riku, who shook his head softly.

"You'd better go before you get caught," he said lowly, in a tone that was inaudible from where the security guard had been standing. "Can you come back tomorrow, you think?"

Sora hesitated momentarily, though it wasn't from debating whether he could come the next day, but instead if he could truly bring himself to leave just yet. Though Riku claimed to be fine, he certainly didn't resemble it, and for some strange reason, in the pit of Sora's stomach he felt as though perhaps he wouldn't get to see him again after this – even if he did promise to return the very next day.

"Sure, Riku; I'll come back tomorrow," said Sora, sniffing slightly to try and prevent tears from welling in his eyes. "Are you – are you really sure that you're okay?"

Riku chuckled softly as he turned his face away from Sora's, the light from the windows reflecting against his turquoise eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Now then, get outta here Sora, before you start crying and make a fool of yourself."

"H-hey, I'm not crying! I just - got something in my eyes!"

"Uh-huh,"

"No, really Riku! That's not fair! Don't you believe me?"

"To be honest…not really."

"Aww, Riku!"

The two boys both began laughing, until a hand cupped around Sora's shoulder firmly. The brunette looked up to find Riku's father standing over him, his expression hardened.

"I think it's time you left now," he said rather sternly, tightening his grip so that his fingers now dug into his shoulder rather painfully. "You've already seen your friend, and now it's late –"

Sora glared up at the man, grasping his wrist firmly and pulling his hand away from his shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going – Just take good care of Riku, okay?"

"You except that I won't?" his father sneered, in a tone so low that it was barely audible. "Just go, Sora – he will still be here by morning."

Sora didn't like Riku's father's tone, yet he chose not to further protest, as there was very little for him to protest with at this point.

"Take care of yourself…Sora," Riku said quietly as Sora rose from his spot on the bed. "And Kairi too, okay? Tell her I said hi, if you see her."

"Okay, I will," Sora said, nodding.

He took a few steps towards the door, before shooting a glance back over at his best friend, lying almost too still within the hospital bed only a short distance away. "Good-bye, Riku,"

"Good-bye… Sora,"

**Author's Note: **Alright, not a whole lot left to go! I'm anticipating writing about three more parts to this, and then this alternate ending will be complete! Please read and review; I'd love to hear what you think so far, even if it's only a few short words :D


	5. Things'll Never Be the Same

**-Part V-**

The next day, Sora attempted pulled his shirt over his head, while listening to his mother griping to him that his capris were too small.

"Well, that's sort of what happens –" Sora grunted, as he tugged the collar of his shirt – which also was too small – over his head at long last, "when you're gone for years and you just so happen to grow!"

Sora's mother shook her head, sitting cross-legged on the edge of his bed, as she checked her watch.

"I _still _cannot believe that you actually snuck out of your room last night!" she cried, as Sora tried his best to block out her voice with his own thoughts. "I can't believe that you managed to sneak out of your room unnoticed! I'm just simply amazed, and then to top it off I'm appalled that you would actually _do _such a thing!"

Sora had his back to his mother by this point, as he sat on the floor to lace up his shoes. His cheeks turned a bright shade of crimson as his mother proceeded to scold him. True, he'd manage to sneak out of his room successfully the night before, but sneaking back in proved to be a problem. For when he was heading back to his hall with the security guard, he found a whole swarm of people surrounding the door to _his _room. He gulped painfully upon seeing this, and had stepped into the mess to try and straighten things out. There were several nurses, a doctor, three security guards AND his mother in his room, and he'd found out that a few search parties had already been sent throughout the hospital to locate him. It took a little while for Sora to straighten out the mess, as the police showed up to further investigate and he found himself having to explain the entire story to them as well.

Sora's doctor was probably the only one out them all that actually found the entire thing to be somewhat humorous, though he hid his laughter the moment Sora's mom expressed her disapproval in the matter by scolding Sora brutally right there, in front of all of those people.

"_How dare you scare us like that!"_ she had hissed in his ear after nearly suffocating him in a tight embrace. _"You had your father and I so worried; we even called the mayor in hopes that he'd help."_

Sora had known that people might find out that he went missing, but he certainly hadn't thought that it would become quite _that _big of a fiasco. He certainly hadn't expected the mayor or the police to get involved – he personally found that to be a bit embarrassing.

He apologized to everyone, and agreed that he'd get back in bed and stay there until morning. Just to be safe, Sora's mom had stayed in the hospital _with him_, just to make sure he wouldn't try anything 'dangerous' again.

"We'll talk about it in the morning, Sora," she said bitterly, as he got back into bed and she brushed his bangs to the side. "Right now you've got to get your sleep – it's late."

And now, morning had come, and he'd been 'talking about it' with his mom ever since he first stretched and opened his eyes. He was getting rather tired of it by that point, and really wished that they could be on their way back home, as he really wasn't kidding; he had things to do.

"Look, I said I was sorry," Sora mumbled under his breath, as he stood up, attempting to pull down his capris' legs as they were uncomfortably small on him. "But I told you before that I was _really _worried about Riku, and I really needed to see him –"

"I know, honey, I know – but you don't go sneaking around a hospital so late at night like that!" she exclaimed angrily, her brows creasing into a frown. "Next time, no matter what, you listen to me and the doctor, understand?"

Sora mumbled an agreement, as he stood up, swinging his duffel over his shoulder. He'd certainly had enough of hospitals to last him a lifetime – now it was time for him to get home, take a hot shower, and return back to the normal life that he'd been waiting to acquire for so long now…

Only, it couldn't ever 'truly' go back to normal, Sora thought bitterly as the events from the night before replayed in his mind, thinking back to what Riku had said. According to the doctors, it was quite likely that Riku would never walk again, and that was something that would be hard to face. It would definitely change _everything, _that was for sure and certain. Sora thought he'd remind Riku to look on the bright side the next time he saw him: at least he could still row the boat for them to get to their play island.

The door to Sora's room creaked, and he could hear his father's voice ask from behind him, "All ready to go, Sport?"

"Just about," Sora replied back, turning his head to look over his shoulder and smile at him, only to notice the familiar auburn-haired girl standing beside his father, smiling radiantly.

"Kairi!"

Kairi brushed her bangs behind her ear gently, as she rushed forward and threw her arms around Sora's neck, standing on her tiptoes in order to reach him properly. Sora blushed slightly, as his parents watched him return her embrace by awkwardly putting an arm across her shoulders. She pulled away after a moment, her hands rested on his upper arms, as she looked up into his face brightly, her eyes shimmering like twin sapphires.

"I'm so glad that you're home, Sora!" she cried, the excitement quite apparent on her face. "You don't know how much I've missed you!"

"Yeah, Kairi – I've really missed you too," he said softly, turning back to look over at his mom, who had an odd sort of smile on her face that Sora wished she'd remove. "It seems like it's been forever, huh?"

Kairi nodded, her expression becoming serious once more.

"It really does," she agreed, letting go of Sora's arms, as she laced her fingers into his, causing Sora's stomach to flutter slightly. "So… you've got a lot to tell me about. You promised me that you would, remember?"

Sora tore his eyes away from the window, bringing his thoughts back to the present as he met Kairi's eye.

"Huh?"

"About your adventures, remember? You said that you'd tell me all about your adventures once we got back," Kairi said, a slight edge of impatience bit into her tone as she teased her best friend. "You still will…right?"

"Oh, that –" Sora said, pulling his hand away from Kairi's grasp and lacing his hands behind the back of his head. "Yeah, sure thing, Kairi. Except, first I've got to get some lunch… I'm starved!"

Sora's mom chuckled, as she rested a hand on his shoulder from behind him.

"I'm not the least bit surprised," she said, smiling faintly at her son. "You've always sort of…been about the food before your friends."

"W-wait, that's not it at all, Mom!" Sora cried out, whipping around to face his mother as she laughed at his reaction. "It's just… well – we've been really busy! That's all!"

"Well, that's okay, Sora, because you're in luck," Sora's dad said, grinning over at them. "I was about to suggest that we all row out to this new Mexican food restaurant that just opened up, how does that sound?"

Sora's brow creased into a frown as Kairi jumped up and down eagerly beside him.

"Hey, can I come too?" the red head asked enthusiastically, stepping forward as she smoothed down her skirt to calm herself. "It's just – it's been so long since I've seen Sora, and we have so much to catch up on -"

"Just a second," Sora interrupted, turning to face his dad, his expression was one of great confusion. "We'd have to 'row' out to the restaurant? Where exactly _is _this place, anyway?"

Kairi's blue eyes widened slightly as his father calmly replied, "Well, do you remember that little island that you guys used to play on?"

"Y-yeah," Sora said slowly, his heart sinking as his father further continued to explain its location.

"The mayor decided to lease off the little island, and now there's this excellent Mexican food restaurant there as well as –"

"WHAT?" Sora cried out, interrupting his father mid-sentence while his mother jumped back in surprise as Sora flung his arms out in protest. "You mean they _built _on our island? _OUR island?_"

"Sora…" Kairi said slowly, tucking a lock of silky auburn hair behind her ear, as she turned towards her friend sympathetically. "No one goes to that island anymore; not since you and Riku left. I'm sorry, Sora, but I couldn't convince my dad not to lease off the land. There were too many people offering him good money, and –"

"Too many people?" Sora asked hoarsely, turning towards his mother with a rather tortured expression. "You mean there's more buildings on our island aside from the restaurant?"

Sora's mother refused to meet his eye as she bowed her head low, nodding ever so slightly. Sora stumbled backwards slowly until his knees hit the bed, and then buckled underneath him as he collapsed onto it. He clenched his hands tightly into fists as hot tears began to well in his eyes. He couldn't believe it - not their play island! Ever since he could remember, Sora's dad used to take him and Riku out to play over on the little island that was not in use by the residents. And now it'd been turned into…a shopping center? Sora knew that two years had passed, and within two years it was inevitable for things to change some, though never in his wildest dreams – or perhaps his wildest only – had he imagined it to change this much. Now their play island was gone – all of the trees had probably been bulldozed, as well as their tree houses and their secret place, the place where he and Kairi used to sketch drawings into the rocks. Everything that had once been theirs was now gone. It seemed as though anything that had once belonged to them was becoming even more remotely removed than it had once been.

Sora felt an arm swing over his shoulder, as he furiously wiped away his tears. He felt foolish for crying in front of everyone, but it was all starting to become too much for Sora to take in. First it was Riku not ever being able to walk again, and now they wouldn't even have their island to hang out on anymore.

"Things are going to be different now," Sora muttered under his breath, as he pressed his head against his mother's shoulder as she tightened her arm around him. "Nothing's ever going to go back to the way it was."

"You can always go home, Sora," Kairi said softly. "But you can never go back to the past. It just… doesn't work that way, I guess."

"Well, why doesn't it?" Sora shouted angrily, as the tears he'd been holding back rolled down his cheeks and dripped from his jaw. "It should work that way, it isn't fair!"

Sora's mother took a deep breath, as she rubbed his back affectionately.

"Things will be able to go back to the way they once were somewhat," his mother said brightly. "And besides, I heard that part of the island is still the same. I haven't seen it myself, but I'm sure you guys will still have plenty of room to roam around."

"Thanks, Mom," Sora muttered darkly, shaking his head, "but I know it just won't be the same."

To Sora, it would never be the same again.

**Author's Note: **

First off, I'd like to thank **KeybladeMosstar **for their review! I'm so glad to hear that you're enjoying the story thus far, and I do hope that you continue to enjoy it as it progresses ;)

I do apologize for taking a tad bit longer than I had intended to get this part up – I wasn't entirely certain if I wanted to take the story to this extent or not, and hope this doesn't turn out to be a wasted lot of words :P I'm trying to add as much depth to Sora, Riku and Kairi's characters as I can (and perhaps even a bit more than we see in-game), but please let me know if they seem too out of character.

I have most of chapter six written up already, and as I'm writing it, it looks like this story will close at about seven chapters :) Possibly 8, if I choose to write an epilogue at the end, which I'm still debating…

As always, reviews are much welcome :D I'm always eager to hear what people think!

A big thank you for reading!


	6. Only the Truth

**-Part VI-**

Sora had been rather bitter about their island being built on, and he was very discouraged with the prospect of their lives ever returning to normal.

"Look, honey," his mom had said to him enthusiastically earlier that afternoon as they were passing through the island. "They left your tree fort, and your bridge, and everywhere that you guys used to like to play on – they really only took a tiny bit of it."

"They took practically _all_ of it, Mom," Sora retorted, throwing his arms wide to further express his disappointment. "We didn't used to play just over here, but on the whole island. Over half of it is gone now!"

"Oh, but there's still some of it left," she said encouragingly, attempting to cheer up her little boy whom was certainly not in the mood to be cheered. He was miserable all throughout their meal and even on their way home.

"Hey, Mom," Sora had asked her when they were in the small family rowboat on their way home from having lunch that day. "Would it be okay if I take my leftover nachos to Riku? I know he loves them, and I'll bet it tastes ten times better than that cafeteria food they have there at the hospital. Besides… I kinda miss him, and I promised him that I'd see him today."

Sora's parents exchanged concerned glances while he sat on the edge of his seat, nervously watching their expressions while awaiting the verdict as his parents silently communicated with their eyes; something that they so often did back at home.

"I don't know. Don't you think Riku might be tired?" his mom asked in an awkward tone, glancing over the edge of the boat and into the dark water below. "You guys had a rough day yesterday, and just because you're back on your feet doesn't mean that Riku is –"

"Yeah, I know," Sora muttered quietly, swallowing back a painful lump that had been developing at the back of his throat. "But I don't think he'd be too tired for me. Please let me go to him, okay?"

Sora's mother sighed, as she opened her mouth to retort, only Sora's father beat her to it and spoke first. "That's fine, Sora. We'll stop off there first, and then we can head home."

Sora grinned widely at him, as he sat back further in his seat, balancing his styrofoam box of leftovers in his lap as he did so. He shot a glance over at Kairi beside him and offered her a wide grin.

"D'you want to come too?" he asked her enthusiastically.

Kairi hesitated, as she bit her lip until it turned white, her eyes darkening with an expression that Sora couldn't quite place.

"I don't know… I know my parents don't like me out after dark –" she began, before Sora interrupted her.

"It would be okay; I'll walk you home. And besides, we don't have to visit Riku for long. I just know that he'd like to see you, as he mentioned you last night."

"I went to see him this morning," Kairi muttered quietly, as she turned her head away from her brunette friend.

"Oh…"

Sora gave Kairi a funny glance, watching her back until he noticed her body quiver slightly.

"I don't think that I can go back and see him right now, Sora," she said thickly, and it didn't take long for him to realize that she was indeed crying as he suspected previously. "It's just too much – to take in right now, you know? I mean, with him not being able to walk, and – and he's so upset, Sora. It kills me to see him this way. He just isn't… the Riku that I remember anymore."

Sora's widened eyes slowly turned from his redheaded friend to the wooden flooring of the boat, as he processed Kairi's words.

"But –" Sora began slowly, "he's our friend, and he needs us –"

"I'm so sorry, Sora," Kairi muttered, shaking her head frantically. "But I just can't go with you. Not right now, anyway. Maybe a bit later, but –"

Sora let out a sigh as he rested a hand on her bare shoulder, which was now covered in goose bumps.

"Hey, it's okay," he replied, offering her one of his wide smiles and exposing practically all of his teeth. "I'm sure he'll understand. Maybe we can both see him tomorrow once we're feeling a little better, how's that sound?"

Kairi sniffed as she slowly turned her head around to face her best friend once more, and she couldn't help but smile back as she surveyed his sincere blue eyes and wide, cheesy grin.

"I'd like that very much."

Sora smiled again, bringing his hand from her shoulder down to meet her hand, as he slid his fingers between her pale slender ones, and squeezed them tightly.

"Okay, we'll do it, then," he promised her. "I'll tell Riku – I'm sure he'll be happy."

Kairi smiled softly, though said nothing as Sora's father continued to row silently through the gentle waves of the ocean surrounding them; the sun slowly beginning to fade below the horizon.

~(*)~

The rubber soles of Sora's shoes squeaked as they met the smooth hardwood flooring of the hospital's halls, as he made his way towards Riku's room. Thankfully, he had remembered where the room was from the night prior, so he was able to spare himself the embarrassment of having to ask anyone at the front desks and run the risk of them recognizing him. He blushed as he continued to walk briskly down the halls – he was still a tad bit embarrassed about that incident from the night before.

He forced himself to an abrupt halt outside of Riku's door to prevent himself from colliding into a doctor and Riku's father, both of whom stood there talking softly to one another in a tone that would seem almost secretive. At his approach, both the doctor and Riku's father turned around to face him, both of whose expressions were grave, which caused Sora to raise an eyebrow of suspicion.

"Hey," Sora greeted them, walking up to them casually as they both continued to stare at him as though he'd come from another planet entirely. "Is… everything okay?"

Riku's father narrowed his eyes, turning his head from the brunette boy and back onto the doctor.

"Do whatever treatments are necessary, regardless of the risk or money that they may involve," his father said darkly, shooting a glance over at Sora – as though this had something to do with him. "I have, regrettably been called into my office - despite the fact that I told them I'm having a family emergency. So, if anything should change on his condition, please contact me promptly."

"Promptly as in 'once it's too late'!" Sora cried out, causing both men to turn and face him once more. Normally, Sora would've cowered under their intense stare and closed his mouth, but instead he continued to further proceed with his lecture, not entirely certain as to what drove him to do so. "You've never cared about Riku, never! Do you know how many times he's shown up at my house _crying_ because you always ignore him? Do you know how much he's wanted you there, to play a role in his life, but you've always been too busy to care?"

Sora drew in a breath, pausing to see if anyone would reach out and stop him, yet no one did and so he further continued, "You've never cared about Riku! And I don't believe, not for a second, that you could ever care about him now, even if he might be crippled forever or dying! Just leave him alone; he'd probably be happier if you did than have a father like you hanging around to bug him."

Sora drew in a breath, as he awaited the explosion to erupt. He knew that he'd gone too far as he watched Riku's father's complexion turn from its normal pale, almost fluorescent skin-tone, to red. To his great astonishment, however, instead of lashing out at him, he actually buried his face in his hand and began sobbing - actually sobbing!

He didn't know what to do - or rather, what he _should _do - as he continued to stand there, feeling helpless as he watched Riku's father cry and the doctor begin glaring daggers at him.

"I-" Sora began, but got cut off as the doctor began swatting him away, as if commanding him leave.

"That's quite enough, boy! You've picked the wrong time to be running your mouth like that," the doctor said sternly, his eyes hard as he watched Sora intently. "Go now, before I call security and have them remove –"

"No," Riku's father spoke hoarsely, causing both Sora and the doctor to glance at him. "He's – he's right; Riku doesn't wish to see me, not after I've ignored him all of this time when I - had the chance to be with him."

Sora's dry lips parted slightly, as he watched Riku's father, a man who normally stood proud with an air of arrogance, stood hunched over, trying to hold back sobs that furiously fought their way forward.

"Let the boy see him; that's who he really wants, anyway."

"Sir, I –" Sora began once more, yet his words died in his throat before they could ever escape his lips – or rather, perhaps they hadn't yet formed, but were only imagined. Riku's father clapped Sora on the shoulder as he passed him, his turquoise eyes that were much like Riku's bore into his own.

"Take care of my son," he said thickly, and Sora could tell that he was trying to ward off tears. "Try to – make him happy."

Sora didn't know what else to do except nod, barely taking his eyes off of the elder man's.

"I will," he promised, while Riku's father turned away, nodding as he quickly made his way towards the elevator and out of sight entirely.

Sora watched his figure disappear around the corner as he let out a sigh. He had a bad feeling that it was a mistake to scold Riku's father by pointing out the obvious, but he certainly hadn't expected him to actually _agree_ with him, either. The entire situation with Riku and his father had been a somber one for Sora to witness throughout the years, and as Riku grew older, he was only shunned more and more. It wasn't often that Riku ever spoke of it to anyone, though when he had, his words were never vengeful, but instead only sorrowful. He felt as though it were bad timing to inform Riku's father of all of this while his son quite possibly rested on his deathbed, but at that point, when would there ever be a time better?

Sora began to take a step towards Riku's room once more, but was halted by a hand upon his shoulder just as he reached out for the doorknob. He whipped around to find the doctor staring intently upon him, his eyes still hard as he gestured for Sora to come nearer. Reluctantly, he did so, and the doctor placed his other hand upon Sora's right shoulder, looking down towards the boy as though he were the mentor and Sora were the student.

"Yes?" Sora asked, not knowing what else to possibly say or do in this instance.

"There's something you should know," he began slowly, "about Riku."

"Oh... Well, I already know that he's been paralyzed," Sora informed him, hoping to relieve the man of a heavy burden, "and that he might not be able to walk again –"

"No, boy – that's not what I was going to tell you," the doctor said with a slight edge of impatience as Sora made his way closer towards him, eyeing him curiously. "I don't believe that you know the true severity of his condition, and how long he's expected to last –"

Sora blinked, his blue eyes observing the doctor's facial features carefully.

"What do you mean 'how long he will last'?" Sora repeated, cocking his head to the side slightly. "What haven't you told me about him? You mean there's more to it than just the fact that he might never be able to walk again?"

The doctor sighed, not removing his eyes from Sora's.

"He suffers from a critical spinal injury, and the full extent of its damage is still unknown," he began to explain to the brunette boy. "Though my initial impression was that the damage had been done, and the boy was indeed stable now, he's only grown weaker and more dependent since he was brought here. This isn't a good thing; surely you must realize this."

"Y-yeah," Sora replied, his tongue going numb in his mouth as he fought to make out his words. "That can't be good."

The doctor barely nodded, still eyeing Sora with a somber expression.

"If he should continue to take the path that he's proceeding with for much longer, he's going to be set back much farther than he is right now, and he'll find many other complications than simply being incapable of moving his legs -"

Sora's heart sank as he watched the doctor, his eyes widening slightly at what he was trying to say.

"But, Riku's going to be okay though… right?" Sora reassured, attempting to calm his racing heart that pounded up into his throat. "I mean, he's already been hurt, and he's fine now, so –"

"I'm afraid that your friend won't have much longer to be with us," the doctor said rather bluntly, breaking eye contact with Sora as he did so. "So please, make the best of your time with him that you can."

"Nah, you've – you've got to be wrong," Sora barely uttered, his voice shaky as he tried to convince not only the doctor, but himself as well of his friend's stability. "Riku'll be fine; you'll see… You don't know everything – everything he's been through before. He'll make it through this, just wait and see."

The doctor shook his head, as he realigned his clipboard that he'd briefly set down on the bench nearby while conversing with Sora.

"I see that there will be no convincing you until the end," he said shortly. "Very well then, go and visit your friend; though please don't be too disappointed if he shouldn't be as well as you would like –"

Sora couldn't hear anything beyond this point, for the doctor's words were no longer comprehendible to him. He knew that Riku had to be okay, because really, Sora couldn't remember a time before him and couldn't imagine a time without him. Sora and Riku were one and the same; there wasn't anything that could truly bring them apart. He figured the doctor must've just been pessimistic, for he knew that Riku was strong, and that he'd be alright. No matter what seemed to happen, Sora and Riku were always together, in the end of it all. He was certain that this time would be no different.

Sora quickly swung open the door to Riku's room. It was a bit more lit up than he'd seen it last time, revealing much more equipment than he'd realized was there before. A nurse whom stood before him blocked Riku from Sora's vision, as she spoke with Riku softly in a tone that was inaudible from where Sora stood. He remained standing by the door silently, waiting for her to finish with whatever she was doing.

"There," the nurse said softly, and Sora had to fight to make out her words. "How's that?"

"Fine," Riku replied flatly, in a tone that lacked any emotion whatsoever.

"Is it any better?" she asked concernedly, as she took a pillow from behind Riku and began fluffing it.

"I – think so, yeah," Riku said finally, his voice sounding partly strained, as though in pain. "Thank you –"

"It'll take time to start taking affect," the nurse informed him. "But I'm guessing you'll probably start noticing a difference within the next twenty minutes or so."

Riku nodded, as the nurse slid the pillow back underneath him and asked him if he needed anything else.

"No… unless – unless my father's out there still, and if you see him," Riku began, his eyes glassy as he looked up at the nurse. "Could you tell him to come back, and that I'm sorry?"

The nurse put a hand sympathetically on his shoulder, as he continued, "I really didn't mean much of what I said. I guess… I was just upset is all."

"I'll be sure to tell him," she said at last, as she turned around to leave, and nearly jumped at the sight of Sora by the door.

"Oh! And who do we have here?" she asked, smiling faintly at him. The nurse was fairly young, and would've been almost pretty had it not been for her crooked front-teeth, the braids that she wore in her hair, and her plain nurse's uniform. Normally, Sora thought braids were pretty, but not the ones that this nurse had. Perhaps it was her smug expression that also had him turned off.

"No wonder she was being so sticky-sweet with Riku," Sora thought bitterly to himself as he surveyed the nurse that stood before him. "She probably has a crush on him – how sick."

Though Riku generally liked it when girls fell for him, solely for the pure satisfaction of thinking he was 'cool', Sora felt a tad bit sorry for him, as he currently didn't seem to be in a state where he'd appreciate anyone hitting on him - let alone the nurse that was supposed to care for him.

"I'm Sora," he said weakly, barely offering the nurse a smile, which came out more as a grimace instead. "Riku's friend –"

"Sora?" Riku called out, leaning forward so that he could better see around the nurse to identify his friend.

Sora stood on tiptoe, waving over to him, as the nurse smiled and stepped to the side.

"Good, I'm glad that you've come," she said, giving Sora a radiant smile. "I felt so sorry when his father stepped out of here as angrily as he had."

"Well, don't worry; he's gone now." Sora remarked proudly, as he noticed Riku's expression darken and turned his face away. "I gave him a talking to, and I don't think he's coming back –"

Riku bit his lip, refusing to glance back over at the two as Sora approached him casually and plopped down on the bed.

"Hey Riku!" Sora greeted his friend cheerfully, and he could tell in this lighting how pale and feeble Riku truly appeared to be. "I brought you something."

"Huh?" Riku asked, looking confused momentarily before Sora waved the white styrofoam box in front of his nose.

"We went out to lunch earlier," Sora informed him, "to this Mexican food place over on our island – but never mind, that's beside the point. Anyway, I brought you nachos."

"Oh," he replied flatly, as Sora handed the box to him and he took it slowly with a mixed expression. "Thank you – you didn't have to do that –"

"Nah, I wanted to," Sora replied, kicking his heels against the wooden flooring, allowing his rubber soles to bounce against the floor and back up into the air. "And besides, they're my leftovers anyway, so it's not like there was much extra effort involved or anything."

"Ah, I figured it was something like that, knowing you," Riku teased, as he set the box down on a small inn-table beside his bed. "But that's cool; thank you. You know that I like them."

"Yeah, I know."

The two boys sat there silently for a moment, neither one attempting to look at the other as Sora continued to swing his feet while watching the floor. He was rather lost for words, and that was something hard for Sora to do. Between his discussion with the doctor, and Riku's slightly wan appearance, he simply didn't know _what_ to say or do. The night before, for some odd reason, Sora had seen Riku differently. Perhaps it was the lighting that made it possible for Sora to discern Riku's condition differently, but he seemed worse – worse than what he was imagining. He was rather pale, and his lips were slightly blue, while he had dark circles under his eyes - and there was something more that Sora couldn't quite put his finger on, no matter how hard he tried. Overall, he could tell that Riku wasn't well, and that scared him – _a great deal._

"Oh hey," Sora began, attempting to break up the silence, as he turned to face Riku, his eyes hidden behind his silver bangs. "I saw Kairi today; she told me to tell you she said hi."

"Oh, Kairi…" Riku said thoughtfully, turning his head towards Sora, yet refusing to meet his eye. "I saw her earlier, too. She mentioned something about catching up with you. I'm glad to hear that she had."

"Yeah, we went out to lunch…" Sora replied vaguely, and then added quickly, "With my parents too, of course."

Riku barely nodded. "Right."

"Riku," Sora said rather abruptly, as he continued to stare at Riku, hoping that eventually he would bring his gaze up to meet his. "I – I saw your dad just a minute ago."

"Oh, did you?"

"Yeah," he replied awkwardly, not really sure that he should be saying all that he was. "He's – he was the one that got me in here, actually."

At last Riku glanced up at his friend, surprise written plainly across his face.

"Really? How so?" he quizzed.

"He told me that he screwed up, basically," Sora muttered, now digging his toe into the floor. "And that he wanted me to make you – well – happy."

Riku's turquoise eyes shifted from Sora and then onto a place on the wall, far out in the distance elsewhere, and it was apparent to Sora that he was deep in thought.

"I was cruel to him," Riku muttered under my breath. "I said some pretty hurtful things – things I know I shouldn't have said –"

"No, that's not what I'm getting at," Sora replied, turning around so that he was facing Riku directly, and began searching for his friend's hand underneath the blanket. "What I meant was that he really does care about you, even though he's had a very odd... way of showing it."

"Maybe…"

"Trust me, Riku – please, he was crying."

Riku froze, his eyes pausing at one place on the wall in front of him, as his eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"Crying?"

"Well…" Sora paused, as he recounted the event that took place out in the hall only minutes ago. "Yeah, he was."

Riku shook his head and leaned back into the pillows behind him, finding Sora's hand that had been trying to find his and gave it a tight squeeze.

"I don't think he's going to be coming to see me anymore," Riku said thickly, his eyes closed underneath his long bangs. "Not after I told him that I didn't want him around."

Sora remained silent, not entirely sure of what to say – or rather, not sure if he should've said anything about Riku's father at all. He didn't realize how sensitive he'd be about it at that moment.

"I'm sorry, Sora,"

"Sorry?" Sora asked confusedly, turning to face his friend. "Sorry for what?"

"Sorry for being so selfish," he replied softly, still not opening his eyes. "I've only thought of myself lately. I've been too busy feeling sorry for myself, and haven't cared what I've put others through for my happiness."

"Riku…" Sora muttered, looking at his friend desperately. "Don't say things like that. Of course you're not being selfish, how would you be?"

"I know it might be hard having you here – seeing me like this," he continued quietly. "But please know that I appreciate it, with all of my heart."

"Don't be stupid, Riku," Sora said, giving his friend a playful nudge in the shoulder. "Of course you're not being selfish by having me here, I don't mind it one bit. I know you're tired; we've had it rough… But don't worry, I don't mind it. I'm glad that I can be here with you."

Riku opened his eyes upon this and smiled up at Sora.

"I think I've told you this before," he began, his turquoise eyes glittering slightly within the dim light. "But I want you to know that it's true, and never to forget it – you're a truly great friend, Sora."

Sora gave him a funny look, as he quickly threw his head back and cracked a joke.

"Yeah, well, most of the time you are too," Sora replied in a teasing way, throwing him a sideways grin. "Except when you were trying to take Kairi from me."

"I hope that you two are happy together - you and Kairi," Riku said hesitantly, as Sora's expression grew more and more bewildered. "You guys are going to need each other."

Sora bit back on his lower lip, as he attempted to calm his raging heart. He sort of knew which direction Riku was headed with all of this, yet he refused to acknowledge it in the least.

"So, are you saying that you don't want Kairi anymore? You're not going to fight me for her?" Sora asked in a mocking tone, attempting to tease his friend and disrupt the seriousness of his demeanor.

"No, I'm just trying to be realistic here –" Riku began, but got cut off as Sora began flailing his arms in the air, shaking his head.

"Well, that's okay – because I'm glad that you're offering Kairi up to me." At this, Sora offered Riku one of his wide, cheesy grins that Riku barely returned, which came out more of a grimace rather than an actual smile.

Silence emitted between them once more, as Sora sat there swinging his legs, with the only sound interrupting the silence being the obnoxious heart monitor that continued to chirp from the corner of the already cramped room. Though the room was lit, the light was dim, and the sun setting outside didn't help matters much.

At last Sora turned to Riku, and watched him somberly for a moment. He wished to deny his friend becoming more and more ill, yet as much as he wanted to, he found that it was blatantly in front of his face – and there was nothing he could do to prevent it.

"Hey, Sora," Riku said suddenly, breaking up the awkward silence between them. "Do you remember that surfboard? That one that I'd gotten for Christmas a few years back?"

"Yep, sure do," Sora said fondly, as he recalled the surfboard that he'd been enamored by the moment that he'd set eyes on it. His parents had gotten it for Riku a couple of years back – the year in which they departed from Destiny Islands to be exact. With all of its bright hues and complex design – Sora had wanted to try it out so badly, yet Riku never let him.

"I know you," Riku had told him with a laugh one day when Sora had been begging him to let him have a go at it. "One blow and you're gonna mess it up."

"Aww, Riku – you're no fair!" Sora had complained to him, yet the elder of the two boys would never give in, and would never share it. Not even once.

"Well, I was thinking… I want you to have it," he said softly, darkness clouding his vivid blue-green eyes as he spoke. "I want it to go to someone that it will mean something to, not just a donation box-"

"Nah, Riku, you keep it," Sora said quickly, his tongue going numb as he said it and the pit of his stomach hardening. "One day you're gonna be able to use it again – I just know it!"

"No, Sora. Let's face it – no matter how we choose to look at things, I'm never going to be able to walk again. Even – even if I live through all of this, which looks unlikely." As Riku said this, tears that had been silently forming in his eyes slid down his pale cheeks. Sora noticed this instantly, as Riku furiously wiped them away.

"No, listen – I know that you'll be okay. You just have to be," Sora informed him, giving his hand a tight squeeze as he said this, causing Riku to nearly flinch. "You're strong, and you've made it through so much before –"

"Thanks for your optimistic outlook on things, it really does make me feel better," Riku replied, sniffing back tears that tried to break through his unwilling eyes. "But I have to face the facts here, and from what the doctors say, I'm not doing too good."

"Don't think like that!" Sora exclaimed, his own tears beginning to leak from the corners of his eyes as he blinked them away, shaking his head desperately. "You're just gonna be held up in bed for awhile, and then they're gonna find a way to treat you. You'll make it through this; I know you will."

Riku bit his lip as his turquoise eyes scanned Sora slowly, from the tips of his brunette hair to every crease on his face.

"Sora…" he began to say, but didn't finish as Sora sprang forward and nearly choked him in a tight embrace, which he returned awkwardly.

"You'll be okay, Riku," Sora said thickly, through a mouthful of Riku's long locks of silvery hair. "You have to be. Things would just – it wouldn't be right without you."

Riku held onto Sora tightly for a moment, as he buried his chin deep into Sora's shoulder.

"Thank you, Sora," he whispered softly in the brunette's ear. "It's very nice to hear that someone still believes in me."

"It's only the truth," Sora informed him.

And to Sora… it really was.

**Author's Note: **

Okay, almost through this! I have only one last chapter, and then I was also thinking to add a grand epilogue after that, taking place about 10-15 years later. What does everyone think of that? Do you all like epilogues such as this, or would you rather I let the future be up to the imagination of the reader to determine?

I hope that the whole transferring of the surfboard thing was appropriate, as I was trying to find some item of sentimental value for Riku to give over to Sora. I was originally wanting Riku to pass over his Keyblade to Sora, but wasn't entirely certain if that would really work or not, or even mean anything to him – considering Sora already has a Keyblade of his own.

As always, I love reviews, and if anyone would like to leave me one I'd greatly appreciate it. It always thrills me to open my inbox and find lovely notes from readers saying what they loved and hated about my stories :D

A big thank you for reading!


	7. We'll Never Be Apart

-Part 7-

The telephone rang, breaking up the monotonous silence of the night. Sora had been lying in bed, watching the fan whirl overhead as he listened to the awkward silence, with only the crickets chirping outside to break it. He'd been lying there ever since he'd gotten home from visiting Riku, though he didn't find sleep greeting him friendly as an old friend like he'd been hoping. No; sleep had been evading him, as he only remained lying there in the darkness for hours on end, his mind only being able to think of ominous thoughts, as it explored areas he didn't wish it to. Too much had taken place over the past few days, and in truth, it was all too much for the young teen to handle.

He buried his head underneath his pillow, pressing his cheek into the warm, soft sheet underneath as he attempted to block out the sound of the telephone ringing, which only pierced his head farther than it already was. At last, he heard footsteps outside of his door and someone pick up the receiver.

"Hello?" his mother answered, as Sora continued to keep his eyes closed, his mind slowing as he felt the fuzzy sensation of sleep begin to creep up on him at last, until he heard his mother say, "Oh, yes. I know Riku… How can I help you?"

Sora began fighting off the sleep he'd been begging to take him so desperately earlier that night, as he pulled the pillow off his head, as he struggled to hear more of the conversation.

"No, I hadn't – but my son had this evening. Why?"

Sora strained his ears to hear his mother's waning voice, as she seemed to head further and further away from him, quite possibly to her own bedroom. The brunette crept out of bed and across his room, which looked far cleaner than he'd had it in a very long time due to it being unoccupied for the past two years. He rested his ear on the crack of the oaken door, as he strained to make out his mother's words, which were coming from the opposite side of the hall, in a very faint tone.

"Oh, my. I – I'm so sorry to hear that. Are you sure? I mean, are you sure he's really –"

Sora's heart pounded furiously as he continued to listen to the conversation, battling to figure out who was on the other line of the phone. When his mother spoke next, her voice was thick and broken up, as though she were trying to hold back tears.

"Yes – yes, I understand. What I don't understand is why his _father's _not there… It's his son; I would've hoped that he'd care a damn bit more than he does!"

There was silence for a moment, as the person on the other line was apparently speaking to his mother, and Sora pressed his ear harder against the door. He then heard his mother's bedroom door shut, making her voice inaudible entirely from where he stood. Sora quickly turned the knob of his bedroom door and crept down the hall silently on tiptoe until he reached his parents bedroom, and rested his ear on the crack of their door.

He heard his mom say "Mmm hmm," or "I see," several times until she said at last, "Okay, I'll be there. Just give me ten minutes. I'll hurry, I promise."

There was some scurrying of feet within the bedroom, and he soon heard his father groan as his mother spoke softly, "Honey, I've got to go to the hospital."

He heard a sound as his father sat bolt upright in bed.

"What? What's wrong?" His father's voice demanded. "Is everything alright?"

"No," Sora's mother said, and Sora heard the rustling sound of clothing, "nothing's alright. A nurse from the hospital just called, and she asked me if I'd come down there to be with Riku."

Sora's heart only pounded harder as he pressed his ear more furiously into the door; the wood leaving an imprint upon his ear as he did so.

"Is he okay?" his father asked concernedly.

Silence filled the room for a moment, until he heard his mother speak again, this time in a tone that was quite hoarse and it was apparent that she was crying.

"She said that he's told her he's afraid to die, and so she thought that if someone was with him, it would seem less frightening to him..."

Sora couldn't take this any longer, as he brought up a fist and pounded on the door, probably louder than he intended. Silence could only be heard from the other side of the door, until his mother turned the knob, opening the door with a wide-eyed expression.

"Mom… is everything okay?" Sora asked, trying to keep his tone neutral, yet found himself failing to do so. "I mean, I heard bits and pieces of the phone call on my way to the bathroom, and – I mean – I heard something about Riku, and something about dying. Is he okay?"

Sora's mom glanced over at her husband, though he shrugged his shoulders and looked away; when serious things were taking place, or something important needed to be said, it was always left up to Sora's mother to be the one to take action – for whatever reason.

"Sora, I need you to get back to bed," she told him, as she reached for her sweater that lay across a chair nearby. "You were just released from the hospital; you need your rest. I need to go see Riku, since his father wasn't reachable and a nurse needs to ask me something-"

"I'll go with you!" Sora exclaimed eagerly, as his mother continued to stare at him with a vacant expression, as though lost for words. "Hang on just a second – I'll go throw on my jacket and my shoes, and –"

"No, Sora," his mother replied, shaking her head frantically as she rested her hands on his shoulders. "I need you to stay here. This is important, please listen to me."

"But Mom – Riku's my best friend. If you're going, I want to go too. And if he's sick –"

"No, Sora," she said sternly, her eyebrows furrowing into a frown. "My answer is final. You will stay here; I can't have you at the hospital with me.

"But, but…" Sora stuttered, watching his mother with wide, pleading puppy-dog eyes, "why?"

"Because I said so," she muttered under her breath, grasping the handle of her purse with a trembling hand. "I am doing what I think is best for you. You might not realize it now, but this is for the better... Please, be good and go back to sleep, okay? Everything's alright."

Sora pouted his lips as he gave his mother a desperate expression, before turning downward to face the ground.

"I'll be sure to tell Riku that you said hello," his mother said encouragingly, as she rushed past him.

"Okay…"

"Now, you promise me that you're going back to bed, right?"

"Yes, Mom-"

"And you won't cause any trouble for your father?"

"Nope… I won't."

"Okay then." She bit her lip as tears rolled down her cheeks silently, her hair in a disarray mess, as she had gotten up and ready to go in such a hurry that she simply skipped over doing her hair. "Everything's going to be okay, Sora. I promise."

Sora was suddenly seized with panic, as he slowly began to realize what was happening.

"He's – dying, isn't he?" he asked, his own voice becoming hoarse as he watched his mother, his mouth quite dry as he forced out the words. "He's dying, and you won't even let me be there with him, to comfort him."

Sora's mom became increasingly pale, as he watched her son with wide eyes. She then turned around and walked out of the front door, leaving Sora standing there, in his pajamas that were two sizes too small, watching helplessly. He had never felt more grieved or helpless – even when he watched Kairi lose her heart, and Riku trapped behind the doors to the realm of darkness, he'd never felt so alone or despaired. Now, it felt as if all was lost. Riku was dying, and Sora had promised him if a friend needed him to be there, he'd be there. He'd meant it, and if he could control his fate, he would've rushed off to Riku right then without a moment's hesitation – dying or not.

With heavy legs, Sora stumbled up the stairs back to his bedroom, his mind racing at a furious pace as he replayed his mother's conversation in his head. It sounded as though Riku wasn't doing well - bad, in fact. And from the sound of it, he seemed to be very, very bad, and Sora only hoped that he wouldn't be gone by the time his mother reached him. It pained him greatly that not only was Riku dying, but he was _afraid _to, and no one would be there to hold his hand, and tell him that it was okay. Sora was going to change that.

He took the last four steps two-at-a-time; as he took long strides silently back to his bedroom. His eyes scanned his room frantically, as he searched for the clothes that the fairies had given him – _the only clothes that he possessed that happened to fit him._

As he tugged his shirt over his head, he glanced out his bedroom window, taking in the view that he hadn't witnessed in almost two years. It overlooked the shoreline, where he, Riku and Kairi used to park their rowboats and would head out to the play island with. To Sora, it seemed almost as if it were yesterday when the great storm had struck out on Destiny Islands, and the three were sent on a grand adventure where they found their fates. The last time he'd looked out that window, he never would've guessed that his fate was to become the Keyblade wielder, nor that Kairi's was the princess of heart. He also never would've guessed that Riku's fate was to divulge into darkness, and that he'd also… die as an aftermath? It just couldn't be…

Sora squeezed his eyes shut tight and then opened them, hoping that everything that was taking place was only a dream, and that none of it was really taking place at all. However, everything was exactly as Sora had left it; from his clouded window all the way down to his big, bulky shoes. He sighed, as silent tears rolled down his cheeks. He never thought that things would turn out this way, _never._ If only he had the power to change it, he would.

~(*)~

Once more that day, familiar rubber soles squeaked across the hardwood floor of the hospital halls as the brunette boy sprinted along them, making his way towards Riku's room with as much speed as he could muster. That is… until a rather unfriendly security guard halted him.

"Hold it," he said, throwing an arm out to prevent Sora from proceeding, which he only returned with a glare. "No one past these halls after hours unless it is an emergency, or you have a doctor's note."

"It _IS _am emergency!" Sora exclaimed, throwing an arm out in exasperation. "My best friend is in there, and he's dying! I've got to go to him right away!"

The security guard squinted, as he observed Sora more carefully.

"Hey," the guard muttered, observing Sora closely. "Aren't you that kid that snuck out of a hospital room last night?"

Sora turned bright red as his gaze dropped to the floor, kicking at thin air as he responded in a nonchalant, "_Maybe_."

The security guard glanced over at him once more and laughed.

"You sure don't give up, do you?" he asked, watching Sora with a tearful eye. "Sorry kiddo, but this time I can't help you – you need to get yourself home before you get in trouble, got it?"

Sora shook his head furiously, as he turned his blue eyes to the guard desperately.

"_Please?_ This time it's really important!" he begged. "My friend is _dying_, and I've got to see him –"

"Sorry, no exceptions –"

"But I promised him!" Sora pleaded, tears now filling his eyes, and this time he didn't even bother to attempt holding him back. "I promised him that I'd be there for him, and I've got to, I really do! He's scared to die and I just – I just want to be there for him. Please, Sir… Please…"

Sora sniffed as he wiped away his tears furiously, swallowing back a lump that was forming in his throat as he stood there under the security guard's scrutiny.

The guard sighed, as he scratched the back of his head in annoyance.

"Why do I always get stuck with these icky jobs?" he muttered under his breath, and then gave Sora a smile. "Okay fine – I'll let you go see your friend –"

Sora's eyes lit up, as he grasped the guard's hand enthusiastically.

"Oh, Sir! You mean it? I can really see him?"

The guard grunted, as he pulled away from Sora's grasp awkwardly, eyeing him hesitantly. "Sure, I'll take you there – same friend as last night, right?"

Sora nodded, a smile running a mile wide implanted across his face.

"Yes, Sir!"

The guard grimaced as he turned around, and began leading the way to Riku's room, which remained within the urgent care center of the hospital. For some odd reason, Sora hadn't remembered that section of the hospital being quite as ominous as it was appearing to be that night. The hour must've been late, though Sora didn't know the exact hour, but could tell by the halls being as vacant as they were that it was indeed an indecent hour, and that most people were probably in the blissful world of sleep that Sora had been so desperate to escape to. Though now, he thought it was more of a blessing that he hadn't, for if he did, he wouldn't have heard his mother's call and wouldn't be there just then.

After what seemed to be fifty stairs and a dozen hallways, Sora and the security guard arrived at the same corner from the night before. Sora turned to the guard with a wide smile before reaching out to shake his hand with much enthusiasm.

"Oh, thank you _so _very much, Sir," Sora told him, still shaking his hand at a much more furious pace than necessary. "You've no idea how much this means to me – to my friend-"

The security guard laughed nervously, as he rested his other hand upon Sora's shoulder, smiling down at him kindly.

"It's alright, Son," he said in an amused tone. "I hope your friend will be alright."

At the mention of this, Sora's face grew pale, as the blood rushed into his ears instead; he'd forgotten about that.

"Thank you," he murmured, as he withdrew his hand, seriousness now taking over his demeanor and replacing his usual exultant persona. "I really… hope so, too."

Sora backed up into the door to Riku's room, as he groped for the doorknob behind his back. A part of him was afraid - afraid to go in there to see what he might find. He wanted to be there for Riku, but at the same time – _if _he were indeed dying, Sora wasn't altogether certain that he wanted to witness it. Death was the great unknown, and it frightened everyone, Sora included, and to see his best friend go through it… No, he _had _to do it. For Riku.

"Because I promised him I'd be there," Sora told himself firmly as his hand brushed the knob and tightened around it. "And I can't back out of my promise – no matter what."

As he drew in a deep breath, Sora turned the doorknob and pushed the door open, fearful to fully take in the details of the room.

The first thing that Sora had noticed upon entering was the silence; the room was exceedingly quiet, almost eerily so. He'd never noticed it that quiet before, though he couldn't quite discern what made it so extraordinarily different. The room was very dimly lit, with only a small light overlooking a countertop being lit, casting a soft, orangey glow throughout the room. Sora reluctantly turned his gaze towards the bed where Riku lay, quite still, and beside him sat no other than Sora's own mother, as she stroked the boy's silver hair while speaking softly to him.

Sora's throat tightened at the ominous sight; the entire room reeked of death, and he hated it – oh so hated it. He remained rooted to the spot as he watched the two of them, fearful to say anything, until Riku opened his eyes and their gaze met.

"Sora!" Riku exclaimed, and for a moment, Sora could've sworn color returned to his cheeks, and the gaunt look under his eyes temporarily ceased as the silver-haired boy greeted his friend enthusiastically, his turquoise eyes brightening just at the sight of him.

Sora smiled weakly and raised a hand to wave, just as his mother turned around towards the door, noticing for the first time that her son was present.

"Sora!" his mother also exclaimed, though not with the same enthusiasm or joy that Riku had, but out of shock instead. "What are you -?"

"I came to see Riku," Sora replied shortly, as he fought to keep his voice from shaking, his feet rooted firmly into the floor as though to hold his ground. He wasn't leaving - no matter what she said.

"But – but, Sora, don't you realize what time it is?" she asked weakly, as she turned a glance towards Riku, and then to her son. "Surely this could've waited until morning, couldn't it?"

"I don't know, you tell me," Sora answered coldly, looking directly into his mother's eyes as he spoke. "You made it sound urgent, and I just wanted to see Riku. If Riku wants me here, you can't make me leave, Mom."

Sora's mother opened her mouth to retort, but her words died in her throat as she turned a desperate glance towards Riku, and then finally to the ground in silent defeat. Sora could tell that she was battling with herself as she remained sitting there, fighting for words that she failed to form.

Riku extended his hand towards Sora, a gentle smile forming against his pale lips as his eyes met Sora's; and Sora could tell that Riku was genuinely happy, if not relieved, to see him. Taking one reluctant glance at his mom, Sora proceeded towards Riku, sitting on the side of his bed and taking the hand that he'd extended out towards him.

"You came," Riku muttered breathlessly, as Sora began repositioning himself. "I didn't think that you would – but you did."

"'Course I came. I promised you that I would, didn't I?" Sora replied, forcing out a smile that was rather painful to pull. Riku's eyes became glassy as he continued to watch his friend, his eyes shining with a radiance that Sora hadn't seen present in quite a long time.

"Am I – being selfish?" he asked in barely more than a whisper, his bangs falling gently into his face. "If you don't want to be here, Sora, you don't have to, but if you'll stay – I'd – I'd really appreciate it."

Sora sniffed in order to prevent tears as he clutched the sides of the bed, swaying back and forth gently within the silent room. The heart monitor – the heart monitor was off. That was the difference that Sora had noticed upon entering. Last time he'd been there, the monitor kept reminding everyone of its presence with its constant chirping, and at the time, Sora had found it to be an irritation. Now, he felt as though it were a comfort, and a tiny part of him longed for it to return in order to break up the monotonous silence of the room.

"I'll stay, Riku," Sora told him firmly after a long moment had passed. "But – you're going to be okay… I mean – We've – we've always been together. I don't remember a time that we were ever apart; and to think that we'll be apart now – _and forever_ – I just can't – I can't -"

"Listen: no matter what happens to me, we'll never be apart," Riku said softly to Sora as he reached out for his hand and laced his fingers into his. "So long as we remember each other, we'll always be together; within each others' hearts. Okay? So even if – _when _I'm not here anymore, so long as you remember me, I'll still be with you. I promise."

Sora couldn't take it anymore, he could no longer hold back those tears that had been trying to force their way out of his tear ducts for so long, as they began to thrust themselves forward, clouding his vision before rolling down his cheeks.

"I'll – I'd – I'd never forget you, Riku," Sora mumbled thickly, turning his gaze back onto his friend while furiously blinking away tears. "Never."

Riku gave Sora's hand a tight squeeze, before offering him a slight, saddened smile.

"You will take care of Kairi this time, right?" he asked in a half-mocking tone. "Because last time I left her in your care, you failed to do so –"

"Why don't you stick around so that you can take care of her yourself?" Sora suggested, though he regretted his words almost as instantly as he'd spoken them from the darkened expression that clouded Riku's eyes.

"I would, except… I can't, Sora. And besides, she likes you better anyway. You two'll make a cute couple."

Sora wiped his nose with the back of his free hand, and half-laughed bitterly.

"Nah, I don't know," he replied with a shrug. "To be honest, I always thought that you'd get her."

"Me? Why me?"

"Because I've always sort of thought that you were better than me at things," Sora replied, swaying back and forth as he remained seated on the edge of Riku's bed. "And so I guess I always thought Kairi would like you more. You really sure that she doesn't?"

Riku laughed at this, as he threw his head back, casting his long locks to fall back away from his face.

"Trust me, Sora, she likes you better – but that's fine, and in the long-run it's worked out better this way, anyway."

Sora remained silent for a moment, as he attempted to sort through his feelings before responding. Sadness crept through his every muscle and joint, as he reluctantly turned his gaze back onto his best friend, who appeared to be almost the same as he'd ever seen him.

"I don't think it worked out," Sora murmured. "If you make it through this, I'll _give _you Kairi, how's that?"

Riku chuckled darkly, as he shifted himself slightly.

"Kairi is a person, Sora; not a possession to be had," he corrected him. "But I thank you for the thought – that was nice…"

Silence reigned on again; with the only sound that Sora could hear being his own heart pounding up into his ears and his heavy breath. As he opened his mouth to speak once more, Riku jerked violently as he gritted his teeth in pain.

"Riku! Are you alright?" Sora asked in alarm, as he reached out a hand towards his friend, who pressed himself into the plush pillows. His eyes remained closed as he drew in deep breaths.

"Sure, I'm – fine," Riku replied at last, his eyes still remaining closed and whatever color that remained in his face began to dwindle away. "Normally I can't feel anything, but once in awhile I do and it – it hurts."

Sora bit his lip until it turned white, as he reached forward and found Riku's hand once more, giving it a firm squeeze and was about to speak before Riku interjected, "Sora – you've always tried to convince me that Santa's real –"

Sora raised a brow as he considered his friend for a moment, and then nodded.

"Yep, and I always will, because I _saw _Santa, and he really does exist."

"Did you go to the North Pole?"

"Sure did!"

"Tell me about it," Riku murmured through gritted teeth.

"Huh?"

"Tell me about Santa's workshop –" Riku repeated, his eyes becoming glassy as he turned them upon his friend. "About Santa."

Sora could only stare at Riku upon this, his heart pounding up into his throat as he watched him only grow paler. He swallowed hard, and closed his other hand upon Riku's cold one, his slender fingers tightening their grasp rather painfully upon Sora's other hand.

"Well, his workshop is located on the far end of the North Pole," Sora began to tell him, dropping his gaze to the blanket as he spoke. "It's down this hill covered with snow – snow, they say, that lasts all year 'round! Can you imagine that much snow, Riku?"

Riku shook his head mildly, as the boy proceeded to stare off far out into the distance, his eyes still glassy as he continued to hold Sora's hand under a death grip.

"Tell me more," he muttered in barely more than a whisper, though Sora could sense the urgency in his tone still.

"Right, well… It's this really cool place on Candy Cane Lane, packed up against other shops and places," Sora proceeded to explain, trying to recall every detail and convey it to Riku almost as vividly as he'd seen it. "All of the rooftops are streamed with Christmas lights, and in the very center there's this merry-go-round, only I never rode on it because it was always out-of-order every time that I tried to."

Riku closed his eyes as he let up on Sora's hand slightly, his breathing growing less tense and more relaxed as Sora continued on with his story. For a brief moment, Sora had wondered if perhaps Riku had drifted off to sleep and paused from his story, watching his friend to see if he'd make any inclination as though he were still awake.

"Go on," Riku murmured, still not opening his eyes, as he readjusted his hand within Sora's. "I'm still listening."

"Uhhh, right; now back to Santa's workshop," Sora resumed, closing his own eyes as to recall the interior of the building. "It was pretty colorful, with lots of stockings, and – oh yeah! I almost forgot! I met the Elves, and they're really cute! They're exactly what I had pictured, though Santa was a little surprising. I mean, I knew the guy was sorta fat, but I never expected him to be _that _much so."

The room remained still and quiet, with the only sound being emitted was Sora's voice, as he recollected any detail from the North Pole that he could relay to Riku. His mother rested a hand gently upon his shoulder, though he refused to look up until he was finished with his story.

"I really liked the place where the presents were made," Sora said in a soft tone, almost one filled with sorrow. "You should've seen it, Riku – it was the greatest thing I'd ever seen. They'd come out of this huge machine, onto a conveyor belt, and down below there were Elves waiting to wrap them up in colorful ribbons and boxes."

Sora looked up towards his friend once more and swallowed hard; he'd become quite still for some time, and his breathing had become rather shallow. Fear pierced Sora, yet he refused to end his story until it was done.

"The best thing of all was when I got to see Santa's sleigh," he said thickly, hot tears forming in his eyes as he spoke. "It was really magnificent, with the reindeer and the whole bit. I had wanted to go for a ride, but well – Santa had to deliver presents, so I decided not to slow him down. If I ever got to go back I'd ask him if we could get a ride. The three of us: you, me, and Kairi. You know why though, right? It's because we're best friends, and from now on, we should do everything together. Nothing – nothing'll ever keep us apart. Ever again. I – I – I promise!"

Sora could've sworn that he felt a slight tension added to the grasp on Sora's hand before it eased, and Riku's head shifted on the pillow slightly. He held his breath, as his teary eyes surveyed his best friend frantically, hoping and praying that his suspicions weren't true. That his friend… He couldn't be…

He whipped his head around to view his mother, who remained sitting quietly in her chair alongside him, her tightening upon Sora's shoulder gently as she spoke in a soft tone, "You were a great friend to him, Sora. He knew that."

Sora's lips tingled as his throat tightened painfully, still refusing to let out his breath as he examined Riku more carefully. With great reluctance, he shook his hand free of Riku's grasp and clutched his wrist, searching for a pulse… that he could not find.

Despite not wanting to, Sora found himself letting out his breath forcibly, with a few tears rolling down his cheeks as he did so. He couldn't truly recognize the fact that Riku was gone – gone forever. Never would he speak to him again, or gaze upon him with his turquoise eyes or smile and laugh with him. The childhood friend that he'd grown up with and loved was gone for good, and no matter how much Sora wanted him back – he would never return.

Sora glanced over at his mother once more, her expression grave as she slowly nodded, affirming Sora's newly discovered truth as well.

"Riku…" Sora whispered softly, turning his gaze back onto his friend before he thrust himself forward, burying his face into Riku's chest as he sobbed deeply, letting out every last ounce of his reserved tears that he could muster and any bit of anguish that remained in his body and broken heart. "I'll never forget you – I promise."

The night seemed to linger on forever, as Sora would not let go of Riku, and eventually had to be torn away by his mother and the doctor. He had been crying then, and was still crying as he was led out of the room and into the hall. His mother had an arm wrapped tightly around him, as she rested the side of her head into him while they walked along the halls. His mother guided him every step of the way, for he seemed incapable of doing this himself.

"Everything's going to be okay, Sweetie," his mother soothed, as she hugged him tightly as they rode down the elevator to the first floor. "I'm so proud of you; you remained strong for Riku right to the very end. He was scared, and I know that you made him feel better; I could see it on his face that he was at ease with you telling him about the North Pole."

Sora sniffled, yet he refused to respond to his mother's statement, and let her words fall down to the ground dead; dead, just as Riku now was.

He was certain that from that moment forward, things would _never _be right again. Never would everything go back to the way it was, or even comparable to that. He didn't even want Kairi anymore; he didn't even wish to stay on Destiny Islands for that matter.

The elevator doors opened, exposing the main lobby, and the glass double-doors that led outside. Sora's mother took his hand gently and led him outside of the building, while Sora robotically followed at her will. He was still stunned, still in shock by Riku's death. None of it felt real, or at least, he didn't wish for it to feel so.

Once the two stepped outdoors, they were greeted with the cool evening breeze whipping their faces, blowing their hair playfully behind them. It reminded him painfully of the many days that he, Riku and Kairi had spent outdoors, wasting away the hours as they played meaningless games on the island, whether it be pretending to go exploring, racing, swimming, or building their rafts. Those were wonderful, joyous days; ones that Sora would remember and cherish forever.

**Author's Note:**

Hmm, that seemed like a rather abrupt ending, didn't it? I was having a rather hard time trying to decipher where this chapter should end, so I just sort of cut it off there. Probably wasn't the best spot, but not to worry; this isn't the end! I'm going to begin an epilogue after this, and then you can see how Sora manages to go on with life, or rather, _if _he manages it at all ;)

It was very regrettable killing Riku off. Trust me, it pained me greatly to do it. Riku is my favorite character from the Kingdom Hearts saga, and if this were truly the ending to KH2, I wouldn't be a fan of theirs anymore! Hehe.

Anyway, please don't hesitate to read and review and let me know what you thought of this alternate ending! I'm rather curious to hear your thoughts :D


	8. Epilogue

**Fifteen years later…**

The sun cast an orange glow across the sandy beach as it slowly began to sink below the horizon, bathing the three children in light that nearly blinded them from where they sat; yet they refuse to move from their positions. This was "their" spot, and something such as the sun setting wasn't going to prevent them from staying.

A dark-haired boy appearing no older than seven-years-old turned his head upward, looking indirectly towards the sun as he observed the lovely shades of pinks and golds that lit the evening sky. It was beautiful and quite positively breathtaking, as most of the sunsets were upon Destiny Islands.

"Careful, you're gonna go blind looking at the sun like that," an older boy to his left chuckled, turning to gaze towards the sky as well.

"I'm not looking at the sun!" the dark-haired boy protested. "I'm looking at the sky, see!"

The older boy scoffed, shaking his head.

"Sure,"

"I'm serious! It just "looked" like I was looking at the sun!"

"Whatever you say,"

The younger of the two boys growled while the other, whom was only a few years older, grinned triumphantly as he brushed his white-blond bangs from his face. His best friend, Kori, always liked to tease him in the most obnoxious ways, and normally, the boy's older sister always had to break it up before it got carried away.

She let out a sigh and closed her eyes, yet her lids couldn't block out the sheer amount light that shone upon her face.

"I wish you two would stop it," she mumbled, her crimson-red hair blowing gently in the breeze. "Watching the sunset isn't enjoyable this way."

"Oh, sure it's enjoyable!" her little brother teased, patting her on the back with a heavy hand. "You just get more people to push around, that's all!"

"I'm serious!"

Sora smiled to himself as he took a few steps closer to the three children, yet remaining far enough so that they couldn't detect his presence. They reminded him very much of three other children that used to sit and watch the sunset just like this, many, many years ago.

While he reminisced the past, Kairi walked alongside him and gave his hand a tight squeeze, causing him to look down upon his wife and offer her a slight smile.

"You haven't forgotten, have you?" she asked him softly, smiling widely. "When we used to –"

"I'd never forget," Sora cut her off, turning his gaze back towards the three children. "Never."

Kairi studied him carefully and then nodded, not saying another word as she remained alongside him, still holding his hand.

Sora sniffed as a single tear rolled down his cheek at the memories of the time that the three of them had spent together on the islands, and he was very glad that his own children had managed to play there the very same way.

"Naminé! Riku! We're leaving in five minutes!" Kairi called out to the two darker-haired children, though all three turned at her voice.

"Aww, come on, Mom! We can't watch the rest of the sunset that way!" the dark-haired boy, Riku protested, while Kori began to plead as well.

"My parents are over at the restaurant on the other side of the island," he informed Kairi. "Riku and Naminé can come home with me when they're done –"

"Well actually, Kori, your parents were wanting us to keep an eye out on you as well, so you'll probably need to come back with us," Kairi replied, causing Kori to pout, yet he said nothing as he turned back around to face the ocean.

"Please Mom, just a little while longer, okay?" Naminé asked, shifting around in her spot on the bent tree trunk to look over at her, her sapphire eyes meeting Kairi's.

Kairi began to open her mouth to retort until Sora threw an arm out in front of her and replied, "Sure, we can wait 'till the sun sets."

The two boys cheered, while Naminé smiled and turned back around. Sora smiled sheepishly towards Kairi, who only scowled and attempted to tousle the already messy brunette hair.

"You're sneaky, you just wanted to watch the sunset yourself, didn't you?" she accused, poking his shoulder playfully.

Sora turned to her and offered her one of his signature grins, before wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. He rested his cheek against her soft auburn hair, his eyes carefully observing the sunset as it glistened against the clear, vast ocean.

The three children sat there silently for a moment, until Riku noticed his best friend turn his head towards him. Riku glanced over to meet his eye, and the older boy grinned widely before turning back around.

"What? What is it?" Riku inquired, still watching the blonde even though Kori was no longer facing him.

"Ah, nothing," he murmured, his eyes scanning the coastline carefully. "I was just thinking."

"Oh, really?" Naminé asked, joining in on their conversation. "And what was it that you were thinking about?"

Kori chuckled rather nervously and shook his head.

"Nothing really, it's just that –"

Riku leapt up from his spot on the tree trunk and got directly in Kori's face, his azure-blue eyes wide as he offered him a goofy grin.

"What is it? Huh? Huh? What?" he prodded, placing his hands on Kori's shoulders and shaking him, even though he was probably a head shorter than him and Kori could've easily flung him if he so wished.

Kori and Naminé couldn't help but laugh at the enthusiastic brunette, whose hair was a slightly deeper shade of brown than his father's.

"Okay fine, I was just thinking about how great of friends you guys are, if you must know," Kori replied at last, blushing slightly with embarrassment. "And I was just thinking that I hope we can always stay together like this."

Riku turned his gaze over to his older sister, and back to Kori again.

"Aww, so serious, Kori! Since when have you liked to think about the future _ever_?" Riku taunted, grinning madly up at his friend.

Kori chuckled nervously as he tucked a lock of his hair behind his ear.

"I don't know… I've never really thought about it before, actually. But just while we were sitting here I was just realizing how much I'd miss you guys if you weren't here, and it suddenly hit me that there might be a day when we're not together anymore."

Naminé looked down sadly, her eyes following the waves that gently brushed the shoreline.

"I hope a time like that doesn't ever come," she said slowly.

"Trust me guys, it won't," an older voice spoke, and the three whipped around to find Sora standing over them, smiling fondly at the three.

Kori blushed an even deeper shade of crimson as he turned away, his eyes nervously scanning the horizon. Riku tilted his head slightly as he watched his dad.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I knew some other kids that were just like you guys," Sora began, swinging a leg over the tree trunk and sitting down between Kori and Riku. "They used to like to sit on this very same tree trunk and watch that same sun set, just like this."

Naminé turned her head to look over at her father, her expression thoughtful as she said, "You're talking about you, mom and your other friend, Riku, right? The one that died before we were born?"

Sora nodded slowly, as he turned his gaze back over towards the sunset.

"We promised each other that we'd always be together, and that nothing could ever keep us apart," he continued, both Riku and Kori riveted onto his face while they clung onto his every word with interest.

"But – that promise was broken, because you three aren't together anymore," his daughter mumbled under her breath.

"Nope! We didn't break that promise," Sora said, smiling slightly. "Because Riku told me a secret-"

"What secret?" Riku asked enthusiastically, eager to know what kind of promise could keep the three of them together forever.

"He told me that we'd always be together so long as we remembered each other _here,_" Sora replied, and upon this, he placed a hand across Riku's heart. "Inside each other's hearts."

"So you mean, as long as we remember each other," Kori said slowly, turning his gaze upon Sora. "We'll always be together, is that right?"

Sora nodded, turning a smile towards the blonde who was only a few years older than his son.

"Sure is!"

"Hmm, I never thought of that before," Riku said thoughtfully, as he turned to face Kori. "Think it works?"

"It _does _work," Sora replied firmly, giving his son a slightly hug as he turned to watch the sunset. "Because I haven't forgotten my friend, and I know, wherever he is now, he hasn't forgotten me either. So in a sense, we're still together, even though we're worlds apart. You know what I mean?"

Kori and Riku both smiled at each other while Naminé nodded in agreement.

"I think so," she replied. "I guess we might not ever really have to say goodbye for good then after all."

"No, we won't," Riku informed her. "Because we'll always remember each other, right?"

Both Naminé and Kori nodded simultaneously.

"Always."

Sora smiled at the three of them, and then closed his eyes; the warm, sea-salt breeze brushing his hair back against his face.

"I'll always remember you, Riku," he thought to himself, as he slowly envisioned his former best friend standing alongside him as he used to along that same tree trunk, smiling fondly at Sora. His silver hair still lining his face as it used to, and his long bangs hanging in his eyes. "And I know that you will, too."

"Then, we aren't really apart," his friend muttered softly, which seemed more of an echo in the breeze than anything else.

Sora smiled and opened his eyes, only to find no one standing there, and only the three children could be found surrounding him. He felt his son draw closer against his chest, while Sora gently rested his cheek against the top of his spiky, brunette head, his hair was just as disorganized as his own.

"And we never will be," he muttered softly.

Silently, the four of them watched the sun drop below the horizon, as the sky grew darker and the stars began to appear. Life didn't return to normal as Sora had hoped, but it did indeed go on – and would continue to do so forever, for as long as they lived and beyond.

**Author's Note:**

Well, that's it, everyone! Thanks for waiting for the grand finale! I hope this epilogue was appropriate, and that I hadn't skipped too many years between Riku's death and this little scene here. I originally had wanted to make the children be the ages that Sora, Riku and Kairi were in Kingdom Hearts I (14 and 15), but then thought against it; for that would've just been too many years to have passed, and I wouldn't know exactly how to tie Sora into the story still if the children were that old.

But anyhow, I would love to hear what you all thought of this story as a whole, so that I can know where to begin next in writing more for the Kingdom Hearts genre! If I sucked at this, well – I know to pick another topic next time ;)

A very big thank you for reading, and I wish you all a very good day (or night)!


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